My Heart Burns for You
by alwaysZutarian
Summary: Four years have passed since the end of the war, but as they meet again and encounter many obstacles, Zuko and Katara realize that what their hearts truly burn for is for one another. Can they love each other knowing they will hurt those that love them? What will become of them when a new enemy appears with a vengeful plot to destroy everything they had worked for to bring peace?
1. Postwar Events

**Here is the first chapter of the new edited version of MHBFY. I hope you enjoy. **

**I want to give my new readers a heads up. This story is rated M for violence and sexual references. The MA version is posted on other websites which you can find on my profile. However, the smutty scenes will occur much later in the story, so have patience! I also want to warn you that this story will be very long and the romance might be slow. If you like those fast paced ones, then I suggest you look elsewhere. **

**Much thanks to my awesome Beta reader Jezebel. V. Sterling! **

Disclaimer- Avatar: the Last Airbender belongs to Mike and Bryan, and I make no profit on this story.

* * *

Chapter One

**_Postwar Events_**

* * *

Opening sharp, golden eyes, Zuko blinked at the minimal amount of light that entered his expansive room as the early rays of the dawning sun struck his pale skin. He always woke with the sun. That was just the way with firebenders.

Stifling a tired yawn, the young man sat up in his large bed and ran a hand through his short, loose hair as he surveyed his royal bedchamber. The bed was high and massive, almost covering one wall of the room, while large, comfortable cushions were spread on the other side of the impressive bedchamber. Gold and red were the prominent colors that decorated the room with a glossy, black marble floor. On one wall hung a large tapestry with the Fire Nation emblem, and extraordinary illustrations of Fire Nation scenery and resplendent dragons covered the other three. On the western side of his room was a large balcony, which oversaw the Capital. From there he could see where the sun touched the sea as it began to rise or set in the sky. It was a beautiful, breathtaking sight, and he always tried to find time to see it.

His royal suite consisted of two large sections: the first being the bedchamber and the other being the antechamber, which must be passed in order to enter his resting quarters—though not many were privileged to do so seeing that he enjoyed his privacy. In the antechamber was where he usually took all of his meals either alone or with those close to him. The royal chambers were now simpler than when Ozai lived there. As soon as he became Fire Lord, Zuko ordered for all of the gaudy decoration his sire preferred to be torn down and the rooms remodeled.

Zuko smiled to himself as he finished scanning his sleeping quarters. He still had trouble getting accustomed to his new room and new life. After spending so many years in a small cabin in his small metal ship, sleeping on the hard ground as a fugitive, and then living in a small, filthy apartment in the lower district of Ba Sing Se, it seemed unbelievable. However, it was not only his room that amazed him but the fact that he was now Fire Lord, ruler of the great Fire Nation, when he had once lost hope of ever regaining his throne or even his home.

Pulling the covers away from his body, Zuko stood and stretched for a moment before moving to his meditation area. Sitting on an elaborate cushion placed before a small altar with candles, Zuko lit them with a flick of his wrist as he closed his eyes and cleansed his mind. He never missed his morning meditation as it gave him the patience required for the oncoming day of tedious work as Fire Lord.

It was nearly an hour later when Zuko opened his eyes and snuffed the candles out. He made his way toward his private bathing chamber that adjoined the room on the eastern side. The bathing room was as magnificent as the rest of his royal suite with the same dark, marble floor and a spacious area, but what he liked most about the bathroom was the large marble bathtub that was placed near the wall facing the door which he used quite frequently.

"Who ever said firebenders don't like water?" Zuko remarked aloud, smirking.

He waited for the tub to be filled before dipping his hand into the water and warming it with his firebending. Once the water was at the temperature he preferred and steam floated in the air, Zuko quickly removed his sleeping pants and climbed into the tub. He sighed as the warm water touched his skin, soaking up the soothing feeling for a moment, then started scrubbing himself with a soapy sponge.

As he scrubbed his chest, Zuko paused and a small frown settled on his impassive features, the large scar on the left side of his face becoming more noticeable. With tentative fingers, he touched the scar that marred his otherwise perfect skin, the scar Azula had inflicted upon him as he flung himself in front of Katara to protect her. It had healed nicely thanks to the lovely waterbender's healing and it was barely noticeable, at least not as noticeable as the one on the left side of his face inflicted upon him by his own father. But even if it had not healed and was as visible as the scar on his face, he would not have cared. He received that scar saving Katara's life, and he was willing to receive more if it meant keeping her safe.

_Katara…_

Memories of her tear-streaked face flashed before his eyes as she knelt beside him on that terrible day, her hands covered in glowing water as she desperately tried to heal his wound and save his life.

_Her soft, gentle hands sliding down my chest..._ Zuko thought with a smile before he shook his head.

There he went again. Every time he recalled _that_ memory, his thoughts would wander into something far less innocent than it was. Katara was just healing him at the time, and he would always be grateful for her help and for her concern for his wellbeing and his life. However, that still did not explain why, after all these years, he kept seeing Katara in his mind everywhere he went.

A soft knock outside his royal bedchamber roused him from his thoughts. Reality greeted him with the announcement of breakfast by his most trusted maidservant.

Zuko answered that he would be ready in a moment and took another few seconds to bask in the soothing, warm water. He sighed as he finally got out, lest his breakfast went cold, and dried himself with a plush, red towel. It was going to be another wearisome day reviewing long documents, signing petitions, hearing his people's requests, and then the dreadful meetings with his advisors. But he should not be complaining. He wanted to become Fire Lord in order to help his nation and his people, and so he had to deal with all of the duties and problems that came with that title. And all this he endured completely for the sake of his nation.

It had not been easy. Hatred and mistrust ruled everyone. A few of the Fire Nation people had even risen in rebellion against him a year after the war ended, but they had been swiftly defeated. The hardest part of all, however, was trying to regain the trust of the other countries, especially the Earth Kingdom. Many people still did not trust him, afraid he would become power-hungry as his father and grandfather before him, but Zuko was determined to show them that he wanted peace among all nations, all elements, just as much as they did. Thanks to Aang's peace seeking and Zuko's leadership, it seemed a likely possibility.

Dressed and with his fire crown glinting on his head, Zuko exited his room and entered his antechamber where the food was already set up on the low table. He nodded at the maidservant who then bowed and retreated from the room.

He picked up his chopsticks and began the silent routine of his breakfast meal. It was moments like these that he wished he were still traveling with the gang, watching as Aang and Toph bickered with one another while Suki reprimanded Sokka for stuffing his face with food without leaving some for the rest.

Though he was confused as to why, Zuko most of all missed the way Katara would hand his bowl, full of her simple but delicious cooking, to him while she gave him a radiant smile.

* * *

Brown locks danced in the frosty breeze as Katara watched her young waterbending students with care and pride as they completed their training for the day. She smiled at the looks of concentration on their cute, little faces and giggled softly to herself.

"Good job everyone. Remember to keep the water flowing gracefully around your form," she instructed as she demonstrated the technique to the children by bending a small stream of water around her.

She waited until they got the move before she congratulated them, "Great! That was awesome! Well, I think that's enough for today. See you tomorrow, and remember to practice whenever you have a chance."

"Yes, Master Katara!" the children chorused as they ran to go play. Katara watched them leave and smiled.

"Katara!" she heard Sokka call from a distance.

The waterbender turned at the sound of his voice and watched as her older brother came up to her, walking with an air of self-importance.

"Don't you mean _Master _Katara?" she replied with a teasing grin.

"Nope, Katara, that's what I meant 'cause you're still my little sister and I'm the Mighty Warrior of the Southern Water Tribe," Sokka replied seriously as he pointed a finger at himself. "Thus, you are the one who should show some respect to the _Mighty Warrior _Sokka," he finished with a large grin on his face.

"Uh huh," Katara uttered as she returned his grin. "Well, _Mighty Warrior _Sokka, perhaps we should see who is the one to show respect by having a little competition," she challenged as she summoned a rather large water whip and twirled it around him. "What do you say?"

Sokka's eyes widened as he stared at the water whip, but he straightened himself out comically as he coolly replied.

"Nah, I'm too tired because of all the new, great inventions I have to do. Maybe some other time, Sis," he said and yawned.

Katara laughed as she replaced the water into her waterskin while she rolled her eyes at her brother.

Four years passed since the end of the war and many things had changed. Waterbenders from the Northern Water Tribe came to help reconstruct their southern sister. Once a small village with a few igloos and huts scattered here and there, the Southern Water Tribe was now a large city that continued to grow. When the men came back from the war, many families sprang up and many children came into the world, especially when many warriors from the Northern Tribe married and settled in the South.

Much like its sister, the Southern Water Tribe now was made of beautifully carved ice buildings that were placed in an elaborate pattern—thanks to Sokka. Not only did he plan this with the village leaders and his father, the chief of the tribe, but he also made suggestions on how to make the canals run through the city and how to build a stronger defensive wall that would keep any invaders out, which she hoped would never be needed.

Katara thought that the best idea that Sokka came up with was how to illuminate the city at night. Candles were placed inside light-blue glass lamps that had been placed along the streets, bridges, and house walls, making the city glow in a heavenly light and causing it to become a winter wonderland.

Katara's thoughts were interrupted when Sokka spoke up again.

"I just got another letter from Suki!" he exclaimed, briefly showing his sister the letter he had pulled out from his parka before he brought it back to his face and stared down at it lovingly.

"Suki says that Kyoshi Island has grown larger and stronger. And she says that the Kyoshi Warrior membership has grown so much they had to open another school! Can you believe it? More warrior women! Women are starting to gain control of the world!" he commented with a laugh.

"Who ever said women never had control? I can recall you doing anything I said in order to fill your big belly," Katara countered playfully as she poked his stomach. She grinned when he rubbed his stomach with a huff. "And Toph always bosses you around. Not to mention that she's _younger_ than you!" She laughed loudly.

"She doesn't boss me around! I agree with whatever she wants because I'm a nice guy," he countered as he looked back down at the letter before muttering, "Besides, I don't want to end up crushed between two boulders. What would happen to my handsome face?"

Katara giggled.

"It's not like it's not already messed up," she teased.

Sokka looked up from the letter to glare at her.

"Besides not all faces have to be flawless to be handsome," she said with a shrug.

The image of Zuko's scarred face emerged in her mind as she said this and she remembered the way she had touched his scar. It was rough, but at the same time, it was smooth and velvety. Even though the scar covered almost half of the left side of his face she never thought him as ugly, maybe a bit intimidating at first, but never repulsive. The scar actually added to his complex character, giving him a bad-boy look, making him look mysterious…handsome.

She blushed as these thoughts entered her mind; though she admitted that she thought about the firebender more than she thought was actually proper. Every time she would stare at a glowing flame—be it a candle, a torch, or a bonfire—she would be reminded of Zuko when he would firebend, as well as that horrible day he had almost died while the Fire Nation Palace courtyard burned as a result of his fight with Azula. Katara winced and lightly shook her head.

That memory always made her stomach twist painfully as she recalled the way Zuko lay in pain on the cold floor, electricity sparking from his body, after taking a bolt of lightning to his chest in order to save her life. She had never felt as scared as she screamed his name and ran to him, not even when _Aang_ had been struck by Azula. She was confused as to why it was so, but either way she was extremely grateful to Zuko for risking his life for her after the harsh way she had treated him when he had first joined their group.

Sokka's deep sigh snapped Katara out of her thoughts and she looked up with a sheepish expression on her face.

Sokka, oblivious to what his sister was thinking, cried out dramatically, "If it wasn't because they need me here I would've gone to Kyoshi Island a long time ago!"

"Aww! How cute," Katara cooed teasingly.

Sokka's tanned cheeks reddened before he scowled at her.

"What?" she asked innocently as she tried to hide her smile when he grumbled under his breath.

She knew that, even though Sokka acted all tough and macho-like, he would do almost anything Suki asked because he was madly in love with the Kyoshi Warrior. Who would have thought that such a terrible fighter and a sexist like Sokka would end up becoming, well…less of a sexist, a very skilled warrior, and a genius—the 'idea guy'?

Her mental praise was interrupted at the sound of Sokka's stomach growling noisily.

"I'm hungry!" Sokka complained as he clutched at his protesting stomach. "What does a great warrior have to do in order to get some food around here? Why can't dinner be earlier?"

Katara rolled her eyes. It seemed some things will never change.

* * *

Sitting silently on his throne among his flames, Zuko listened carefully and somewhat impatiently as the members of his Court Council argued amongst themselves about the welfare of the Fire Nation. Hours passed since Zuko had stepped into the meeting room and he could feel a headache coming on.

"More soldiers should be sent to protect and gain more control of our colonies in the Earth Kingdom!" one old and rather obese advisor yelled. "If we do not show more control, the Earth Kingdom residents will surely start a rebellion and will seek to overthrow our rule!"

Some of the older advisors agreed with him with low grumbles and nodding heads. Zuko resisted the urge to rub at his temples.

"But we cannot spend more money on recruiting more soldiers. Besides, as much as you hate it, we are not at war anymore. We have to use our funds in order to keep manufacturing goods so we could export them to the other nations. If we spend more money on the military we won't have enough for our resources," another elder explained calmly, which gained the support of most of the other advisors.

Zuko nodded in agreement. Opening up trade with the other countries was what helped his nation regain its feet, and not to mention a bit more trust from the Water Tribes and the Earth Kingdom. And in order to keep goods going they needed the funds. Once, Zuko almost laughed when he read the monthly report that stated that what the other nations demanded greatly was not their famous steel, but red wine.

"But most of our products come from our colonies and if we do not keep control on these colonies, then guess what will happen…if you are smart enough," the first advisor sneered, his large belly jiggling as he moved. "We would not only lose the colonies we fought so hard to gain, but we will also lose your precious goods, you fool!"

Zuko narrowed his eyes as he glared at the old man. His name was Wei. He was rather old, but had a sharp mind and a sharp tongue. He was one of Ozai's old advisors and was one of the few who still favored world domination. He constantly tried to argue that the war was for the betterment of the Fire Nation, but Zuko knew Wei only wanted power and wealth for himself.

Zuko hated the man. Wei was the first one on his list of the advisors he wanted to dismiss as he ascended the throne, but Iroh convinced him it was best if he kept the most influential and most wealthy around him in order to gain their trust and their support. Unfortunately, Wei was the wealthiest and most influential of them all. Even though some still sided with Wei, many of the others started to see the foolishness of the war and longed for peace to settle among all nations once again.

The other man who was arguing with Wei glared at the fat nobleman. Chao was his name and he was one of the men Zuko had appointed to his Council. Not only was Chao one of his uncle's friends, but he was also wise and patient and he argued the best against the war among his fellow advisors. Not to mention he always asked for Zuko's views and opinions and backed him up in every decision he made. Something Zuko noticed that Wei never did.

The young Fire Lord always had to calm himself down every time Wei disregarded him because the old advisor thought he was too young to rule and not intelligent enough to comprehend how to be Fire Lord. He especially hated every time Wei would call him 'the Young One'. He was not a child, for Agni's sake! Zuko had to breathe several times so as not to act on his urge to burn the ever-present stupid smirk off Wei's face.

"Well, I think we should ask Fire Lord Zuko to give us his opinion on this matter," Chao replied, looking confidently up at the twenty-year-old ruler.

All the advisors turned to look up at him, sitting behind the orange flames. Zuko could feel Wei wishing to see him make a fool of himself, but thanks to Uncle Iroh and Chao, Zuko had quickly learned how to handle politics.

"Yes, let us see what the Young One has to say," Wei simpered as he leaned back in his spot.

Zuko clenched his hands as he growled in his head. _That stupid imbecile! I'll burn that stupid smirk..._

While he cursed in his head, his facial expression remained placid and neutral.

Zuko regarded the men in front of him calmly as he carefully thought over what to say. He needed them to side with him and see that ruling over the whole world was not the best thing for the Fire Nation. If there were anyone that could give out inspirational speeches that would make them all see reason, he would undoubtedly name Katara. But unfortunately the waterbender was all the way in the Southern Water Tribe, and so, not only could he not hear her voice, but he could not see her beautiful face or find comfort in her presence either.

A small cough brought him out of his thoughts. He inwardly shook his head before he straightened himself out so he could begin.

"I believe that what you have said is correct, Wei. Our colonies are a very important source for the production of our trading goods," Zuko began. He could see Wei's smug grin broaden.

"But…" he continued and he inwardly smirked as Wei's expression changed, "I don't think sending more soldiers would be a good idea. Our colonies are well protected as they are and the governors I personally appointed are running the cities with justice and a fair amount of control. I have received reports stating that both Fire Nation citizens and Earth Kingdom residents are living well together. There may be some tension now, but I am sure that with time trust will win out."

Many of the men in the meeting room chamber nodded in agreement, but he knew some were still skeptical.

"Besides, if we send more soldiers to the colonies, we might give the wrong impression. The Fire Nation citizens might believe they are being protected because they are in danger and might begin to distrust their neighbors even more, while the Earth Kingdom residents might think we are trying to control and oppress them," he glanced at Wei for a second, "which might actually start a rebellion."

Zuko paused and looked around the room behind the glow of flames.

"I really believe that in order for the Fire Nation to regain its honor and glory we need harmony among those living in our colonies. And if there is harmony between the elements in the colonies, then there will finally be peace and harmony among all nations and all elements that will hopefully never be broken ever again."

The young Fire Lord stared at the men before him as the room went silent before he settled back on his throne cushion with a small sigh.

* * *

After removing his Fire Lord attire and putting on a comfortable shirt and a pair of pants, Zuko sat at the table in his anteroom reading over some documents he had not finished in his study. After giving his opinion in the meeting room, Zuko was actually surprised when most of the men smiled and even applauded him. He thought that maybe he sounded too idealistic, but that is just the way he felt the world should come to be. Peaceful. Mo more war, hatred, suffering, and death.

_'No more children being ripped from their parents,_' was what Katara had told him once when she was healing his chest a few days after the Agni Kai with Azula.

His thoughts were interrupted as a monotonous voice commented, "I hope this time they make a better soup."

Mai sat across from him, folding her hands on her lap under the table. He was so caught up in his thoughts that he had not noticed his thin, dark-haired girlfriend enter the room.

Zuko smiled slightly at her.

"Mai, I didn't hear you come in. I'm sure the soup will taste fine. The Palace Cook always makes delicious plates," he replied passively.

Mai just nodded.

"So, how was your day?" Zuko asked as he placed his papers to the side, hoping to get distracted from his work and thoughts, if only for a bit.

"Nothing interesting, just the same old routine, practice with my daggers and reading," she replied without emotion. "But I did receive a letter from Ty Lee. She seems to be enjoying herself at Kyoshi Island and informed me that they have opened a school for incoming Kyoshi Warriors," Mai said evenly as she watched him with her dull, dark eyes.

"Well, Ty Lee always enjoys herself no matter where she is. I'm glad Kyoshi Island is doing well," Zuko replied, hoping she asked him about his day. He wanted to have a conversation with someone who was not always judging him or was intimidated by him.

A few of his advisors where frightened by him not only because of his temper–which as he grew older he was gaining more control of—but because he had proven himself to be a great leader despite his young age. This made them uneasy because he had proven to be hard to manipulate and thus hard for them to advance in their own interests.

Mai only nodded and sat there without moving. Zuko frowned as the silence became a bit uncomfortable. He was never good at initiating conversations...that was his uncle's job. He missed Iroh terribly. He missed his uncle's wisdom and his annoying hints. Hell, he even missed Uncle's tea!

Zuko wished Iroh was there helping him with his rule, but the old man had decided to go back to his teashop at Ba Sing Se as he realized that his nephew had learned how to handle the Fire Nation. As the silence grew longer, Zuko let out an inaudible sigh.

"Well, I certainly endured an exhausting meeting today," he began.

She yawned lightly.

"Yes, I'm sure it must have been awful. Just like every other meeting," she replied.

Zuko did not know whether to think she yawned because she was tired or she just did not want to listen to him talk about his dreary day, though he was slightly surprised that he was unaffected by it. As the years passed by, his relationship with Mai became unexciting, not that it had been that much in the first place when they became a couple when he returned with Azula after what happened at Ba Sing Se.

A few months ago, Mai asked him if she could move into the palace and he had accepted since he did not see any problem with it. Though he had to wonder what the point was since they hardly spent time together. Sometimes he wondered if he asked Mai to be his girlfriend because he hoped for their relationship to become something meaningful, or because back then he had been so lonely he accepted her affections when she had approached him and confessed she had had a crush on him since they were children.

Just then, dinner arrived and all thoughts of recounting his day were forgotten. They ate in silence as each dwelled in their own thoughts.

After they finished their meal, Mai looked up at him and glanced at the doors that led to his private rooms before she looked at him again. Zuko pretended he did not notice her request to enter his room and coolly looked away. He did not allow anyone into his sleeping quarters, except a few trusted servants to clean it, not even Mai.

When she realized that Zuko was not going to invite her in, like she had hoped ever since he became Fire Lord, Mai suppressed a huff as she gracefully stood up.

"Well, I'm sure you must be busy, so I think I'll go to my room now if you don't need anything. Good night," she said almost coldly.

Zuko nodded and he, too, stood up to walk her out his door. He was a bit surprised, though he did not show it, when Mai turned around and kissed him lightly before the servants entered the anteroom to clean it.

"We should go to Ember Island again one day, Zuko, at least for some change in this boring life," she murmured as she ran her thin hand down his chest.

Zuko frowned. _Boring Life? Running this great country should be an honor._

"I'll think about it and I'll see if I have time for a small vacation," he answered impassively.

Mai frowned slightly, but quickly recovered her emotionless expression as she gave a small nod and walked out the door.

Zuko sighed as he went to his bedchamber while the servants cleared the dishes from the low table. He removed his clothing and changed for the night. Piling all of his paperwork on his lap as he sat on his bed, he began to recall the events that happened in the last four years.

Becoming Fire Lord of a nation that had been badly governed and caused a great deal of destruction to the other countries was difficult. He had to deal with national debt and on top of that, he had to regain the trust of the Water Tribes and the Earth Kingdom. But the worst part was the hatred of his own people, mostly the elders, and more accurately Wei. They had been outraged when he called for peace and the end of the war and thought him unfit to be their Fire Lord, not only because back then he had been a seventeen-year-old teenager, but because they thought him a traitor to his own country. That really hurt, but Zuko never gave up and was determined to keep his promise of peace and even more determined to regain the honor and glory the Fire Nation had lost in the hands of the previous selfish rulers. Thanks to his determination and great leadership, his nation became more prosperous and all the countries began to trade with one another, and in a way began to accept each other.

Zuko rubbed his temples as his vision began to blur from concentrating too much on the documents. It seemed that every time he finished one pile, another would spring up in its place. Putting his papers aside, he settled into his bed.

With a wave of his hand, the candles extinguished, but the fire from the fireplace near one wall illuminated the room a bit. However, Zuko's thoughts did not end there, but wandered into more serious problems.

The light from the fireplace cast shadows around the large bedchamber as darkness settled in. As Zuko lay in his bed, his thoughts wandered to Mai and their relationship. He had imagined that once he became Fire Lord everything he wanted and wished for would finally come true, but it was not so. Mai was still…Mai. She was still dull and monotonous and she rarely talked. Not to mention her physical appearance had not changed much except for the fact the she was as tall as him. There were days when they did have great times together, but that was rare. And it did not help that he was busy all day with running a nation.

But he could not deny the fact that he was thankful that Mai stood up to Azula in order to save him from his psychotic sister. And he was impressed since it was not an easy thing to do—she could have really gotten hurt if Ty Lee had not intervened in Azula's wrath.

Zuko frowned. He often thought about this event and he always felt guilty for not going after Mai when he helped Sokka rescue his father and Suki from the Boiling Rock. He had completely forgotten about her, as he was occupied with finding escape from the island.

He began to feel even guiltier by admitting that he forgot about her because he was too busy with other matters such as finding a better way to firebend, teaching Aang firebending, the whole Sozin's Comet situation…

_Helping Katara find her mother's killer in order to gain her forgiveness and friendship…_

Zuko frowned and scowled slightly at himself for his thoughts.

Of course he wanted Katara to forgive him after all he had done to her and the rest of his friends. He had wanted her to see that he had indeed changed and the only thing he wanted was for his father to be defeated and the war to end. Besides, he had not wanted any more tension among the group as Katara and he had their differences. It had nothing to do with him wanting the lovely waterbender to like him. Of course not! That was just ridiculous!

Somehow, he had this feeling as if his conscience was laughing at him.

Okay, so maybe he did want Katara to like him, at least a little. There was nothing wrong with that. Right?

Zuko rolled over in his bed. Moreover, he helped her find her mother's murderer because it was the only way she could get closure. It was the only thing he knew he could do to help her, and it worked. Katara did forgive him and she gave him her friendship.

Not only did she give him her friendship and trust, but she had embraced him as well. The only other people who have ever hugged him were his mother and his uncle. He could still recall the day when they returned from confronting Yon Rha. The sun had been setting over the horizon, turning the sky and the ocean a bright orange and rich red color as Katara sat at the small dock with her feet dangling into the water before she rose to greet them when he rejoined her with Aang. The young monk had tried to comfort her, but she refused his words of comfort and instead turned to him and a small blush had seeped onto her cheeks.

Before he could have pondered deeper about the blush, she had walked over to him and told him that she was ready to forgive. Then she had flung herself at him, circled her arms around his neck, and embraced him. He had frozen in shock for a second before he quickly encircled her waist and returned the embrace, but all too soon, she pulled back.

He had surprised himself when he had almost tightened his hold on her when he felt her start to move away, and even now, he still wished the embrace could have lasted a bit longer or perhaps be repeated again sometime in the near future. He liked the way her small and soft body felt against his, how her hair caressed the side of his face, and how her arms encircled his neck.

Zuko frowned at his sudden need to see the waterbender and berated himself for having such thoughts about Katara. With a sigh he wondered what was going on with him after what happened that day and why all of the sudden his thoughts switched from his reflection on his relationship with Mai to the Master Waterbender.

"Katara is just a very good friend," he argued silently to his dark room. "And Mai is my…girlfriend. And she was there for me after my fight with Azula."

_But you didn't even think about Mai until she showed up in your room…right before your coronation,_ a small voice in his head said.

He flinched in consequence of the fact that he could not deny it. He had actually been surprised when he heard Mai's voice as she entered his room to help him into his robe by reason that he was in so much pain after Azula's attack.

_But I was glad she was there and that she was well,_ Zuko told himself.

Though there was a part of him that wished it had not been Mai that entered the room to help him, that it had not been her that he kissed but…Katara.

Zuko closed his eyes and sighed deeply as he waited for sleep to claim him so he could find some peace from his confusing thoughts. The same thoughts he had for the past four years.

* * *

After a quiet dinner, Katara's family made their way to their bedrooms to retire for the night. Since Hakoda had been appointed Chief of the Southern Water Tribe, their house was the largest of the entire Tribe. It was not as grand as the Northern Tribe Palace, since it was not a palace in the first place, but it was still impressive nevertheless. It was made of smooth, thick ice and snow with many elegant carvings. It held the Tribe meeting place as well as lodgings for guest and ambassadors. Their house actually had a stone floor given to them by Omashu's eccentric ruler, King Bumi. From the entire Tribe, it was the only building that had a huge steel entrance door, a gift from Fire Lord Zuko himself.

Katara let out a soft sigh as she entered her room and closed the door softly behind her. She removed her clothes and put on her warm sleeping attire before she made her way to her small pinewood dresser. The young woman sat in front of the mirror before she picked up her brush and started to comb her long, brown hair.

Hanging on the walls of her small room were water paintings of scenes from beautiful lakes and oceans. There was an ice window on the western side of her room, and on the opposite side, sat one small bed piled with warm furs and blankets of various shades of white, silver, and blue. At the head of the bed was a large pile of fluffy pillows that Iroh had sent her for the past few years. Ever since she had spent time drinking tea with the lovable old man in his tea shop, Katara had come to care for him as her own uncle, and he had come to care for her as well. They even exchanged letters.

The best part of her new room, though, was that now she had a private bathroom. Now she did not have to bathe with everybody in the same room, with only a blanket surrounding the tub for privacy. She enjoyed taking her time as she bathed, after all.

Katara was about to braid her hair when she heard someone knock on her door once before opening it, her Gran-Gran entering the room. .

"My, my! You really have grown into quite a lovely young lady. Just like your mother," Kanna exclaimed as she smiled at her granddaughter.

Katara smiled slightly at her grandmother's words. She remembered her mother, always beautiful and loving. Kya loved them so much she sacrificed herself to save them, to save her. Katara reached for the comfort of her mother's necklace as she remembered the day her mother gave it to her.

Kanna noticed her granddaughter touching the blue necklace, and with a soft sigh, she walked toward her young granddaughter.

Reaching for Katara's hand, the old woman added in a motherly tone, "Katara, I know how much this necklace means to you, but you must realize that one day you will have to part with it once you receive your own betrothal necklace. Then one day you will hand it down to your own daughter as I have to your mother when she married my son and she to you."

Blushing, Katara replied, "But, Gran-Gran, I'm still too young to be thinking about marriage and having children!"

Kanna only chuckled and shook her graying head as she moved around so she could braid her granddaughter's hair.

"But many girls in our culture marry at sixteen and begin to have children almost a few months or a year later," the old woman reminded her. "You are already nineteen, my dear. You're not that young."

Katara remembered Yue being engaged at sixteen before she turned into the Moon Spirit. When she turned sixteen-years-old herself, many of the young men from both Tribes had tried to court her, especially since she was one of the heroes of the war and daughter to the Southern Water Tribe Chief. But of course, she always declined their offers since she was Aang's girlfriend, but this did not seem to stop the suitors.

And Kanna knew this.

"I am getting older by the minute, Katara," she sighed as she finished braiding Katara's long hair. "And your silly brother still does not have the courage to propose to that lovely Kyoshi girl. So I ask you this, when am I going to have great-grandchildren?"

Katara frowned at the question since she really did not know. She did not think she was ready for marriage and much less begin to have children.

Quickly changing the subject, Katara asked, "So how are things going with you and Master Pakku?"

After the war, Master Pakku had again courted Kanna and a year later they married. And to Katara's relief, Gran-Gran began to rant about how loudly Pakku snored at night.

* * *

The moon's soft light spilled into the quiet room from the ice window. Gran-Gran's words filled Katara's head as she tried to sleep among her warm furs. Marriage had not entered her head recently since she was too busy rebuilding her home and teaching the children waterbending.

She remembered the day, almost four years ago, outside Uncle Iroh's teashop when she accepted Aang's declaration of love. At that moment, she thought she was ready for a relationship, she thought she was sure of her feelings, and everything seemed fine at first. Aang was so sweet and lovable and they always had fun, but that was it. Their relationship seemed only based on having a great time, mostly on Aang's part. He was always running around trying every new and exciting thing, sometimes even neglecting his duties. Sometimes it was just…childish.

Katara longed for a mature conversation, something more serious, deeper. Not to mention how clingy Aang sometimes got, making her try all his newfound amusements. But it wasn't Aang's fault. He was a child at heart.

Katara sighed. It was even harder since Aang was absent most of time doing his Avatar duties, bringing peace to the world. She could not blame him since he did not only belong to her, but to the whole world. Even though they spent a lot of time together when he came back, it was hard for them to communicate when he was away. He did try to send her letters whenever he could, though they mostly consisted of things he did and saw.

Toph had also taken the trouble of writing to her and Suki had also written to her, even if most of her letters were addressed to Sokka. And Iroh—_Uncle_ Iroh as he had so many times corrected her—wrote to her quite often, writing about his teashop business.

Katara laughed quietly, touching the fluffy pillows that surrounded her as she remembered when the old man wrote about the time he was so busy flirting with a pretty lady that he almost burned the pastries. It was sometimes amusing to know that such a cheerful and charismatic person like Iroh could be related to Zuko who was the complete opposite.

Even Zuko took the time out of his busy schedule as Fire Lord to write her a letter. It was a short letter, but it was touching, nevertheless. It was a congratulating letter for her nineteenth birthday. He had apologized for being unable to attend her party and wished her the best, but the letter was not the only thing he sent. Zuko sent her a present...a beautiful, silver hairpin. It was shaped as a rose and embedded on its petals were small sapphires and rubies.

Upon opening the package to reveal the pretty jewel, everybody had gasped with admiration. Aang only scoffed saying Zuko was trying too hard to impress them all, and with a confident smile he gave her his bouquet of panda-lilies, hoping she forget the hairpin.

But she couldn't. Katara tried to refuse Zuko's gift saying it was probably very expensive and did not deserve it, but Gran-Gran advised her against such an idea since it would be rude to return such a gift.

_'Besides,'_ Kanna had reasoned, _'Fire Lord Zuko sent it to you as an apology for not being able to come to your party.'_

As Katara lay in her bed, she reached for her hairpin on the nightstand. It was too beautiful to keep hidden in a box and too precious to wear, at the risk of her losing it or damaging it, especially since she was always busy. She touched the lovely stones as they glistened from the moonlight that entered her room from the window. She loved the way the red and blue stones sparkled, and when she held it in a certain way, both stones seemed to fuse, creating a beautiful violet color. All her previous thoughts of her relationship with Aang were forgotten as she thought about Zuko.

She smiled. Zuko, the angry and arrogant former Crown Prince of the Fire Nation, now one of her friends and the new Fire Lord. She laughed. She could not believe how much they had changed.

"I wonder how much more he has changed since the last time we have all seen each other," Katara thought to herself, stroking the hairpin as if she expected it to reveal something to her.

Right after the war, the gang had spent two weeks at Ba Sing Se at Uncle Iroh's teashop before Zuko was called back to the Fire Nation. After that, the group hardly spent time together anymore. Toph was helping Aang around the Earth Kingdom. Suki continued to teach the Kyoshi Warriors and Sokka and Katara were helping in the Southern Water Tribe. But despite this, Aang always came back to visit, obviously for her, and even Toph sometimes came. Okay, maybe always complaining because she could not see nor bend, but they all knew she enjoyed herself. And Suki visited a couple of times with her Kyoshi Warriors, especially to see Sokka.

But not only was Zuko the farthest away, he was also the busiest of them all. He was the one who had to deal with trying to build trust among the other nations and deal with all the postwar hassle. But the hardest part must be trying to lead a country who still called for the war to continue, especially for someone so young.

_But he can take it. Zuko never gives up. He would do the impossible for the well-being of those he cares about,_ she thought.

Katara found herself blushing.

_Just like when he almost got himself killed when he placed himself in front of his crazy sister's lightning in order to save my life._

Every time she recalled this memory, she could not help feeling guilty. If only she had listened to him and had stayed out of the way, he would not have been hurt. She had felt horrible as she saw him lying there in pain, his life slipping away. She remembered how her hands scanned his badly injured chest.

His warm, muscular chest…

"What am I thinking?!" she exclaimed with a shake of her head.

She should not be having such thoughts, especially since Zuko had been injured almost fatally. She had just touched his chest to heal him.

With another shake of her head, Katara set the hairpin back on the nightstand, settled herself in her warm blankets, and finally fell asleep with a sigh.

* * *

**A/N: I want to thank you all for your encouraging words and patience. Thanks for reading!**

**~alwaysZutarian**


	2. New Surprises

**Enjoy!**

**Thanks to my Beta reader Jezebel. V. Sterling!**

ATLA is not mine.

* * *

Chapter Two

**_New Surprises_**

* * *

After his regular morning meditation, Zuko made his way to the training arena, the only place where he could vent his frustration without breaking something or hurting someone. That someone being Wei.

"Good morning, my lord," Chao greeted as Zuko entered the arena. "I trust you had a good night's rest?"

"Yes, lovely," Zuko murmured sarcastically as he shrugged off his shirt and threw it aside.

Chao was frequently present whenever Zuko practiced his firebending, a favor Iroh had asked of him. Iroh and Chao had been friends since their childhood and Iroh trusted him with Zuko's care above anybody else in the Fire Nation. Chao reported all of Zuko's progress to Iroh, either in his being a Firebending Master or Fire Lord. Though sometimes it made Zuko feel as if he were a child and he hated that feeling.

Zuko made his way to the middle of the small arena. Off to one side were a few wooden logs placed in an organized horizontal line. The young lord glanced at them briefly as he stretched for a few moments before gracefully moving into a fighting stance. Inhaling deeply, he began to send fire blasts through the air. He moved with great agility, punching out with fiery fists and leaping into the air, sending powerful flaming kicks. For some time he practiced the basic moves, getting his muscles warmed up. Then shifting rapidly into his more complex steps, he created his fire whips. He circled them around his form in a series of complicated moves before whipping them down, creating a loud cracking sound that resounded through the arena. Zuko rounded on the logs and with great concentration, he began cutting the pieces of thick wood set up for him in halves. The half pieces of wood fell to the side, none of them catching on fire.

Silently, Chao watched intently as the Fire Lord continued with his daily practice, admiration showing slightly on his face. Zuko had indeed become an even more powerful firebender the more he practiced and the more determined he got. He had really gained control of his element, unlike the way it used to be when he was younger.

Zuko retracted his fire whips, and without missing a step, he again continued to punch fire blasts into the empty air before him. Now he had to practice his firebending alone, since none of his trained men could keep up with his advanced skill. He could not deny that this made him proud since he was much younger than they were, but sometimes he wished he had someone to spar with to make things more interesting…or less lonesome. Mai had offered once, but he did not want her to get hurt.

Taking a few deep breaths, Zuko slowed his speed and wound down his steps.

"Great move with the fire whips, my lord," Chao praised him as Zuko finished his last stance. "Your uncle would be very proud of your incredible skill and the way you have greatly improved these past years."

Zuko offered him a small smile as he wiped the sweat from his face with a small towel.

"I'm sure Uncle would be even more proud if I finally learned how to make tea," he said wryly.

Chao began to chuckle quietly when they were interrupted as a guard came running toward them. Zuko frowned and placed the towel around his neck as he waited for the guard to near them.

"My Lord Zuko," the guard got out between huffs as he bowed respectfully, "Your presence is requested urgently in the throne room."

Zuko and Chao looked at each other with questioning frowns on their faces before the young Fire Lord returned his gaze to the awaiting soldier.

"Tell them I'm on my way," he stated as he turned around and quickly made his way to his bedchambers so he could clean up and change.

He wondered what the urgency was as a frown settled on his features.

* * *

Katara watched the restless children as they practiced with amusement dancing in her blue eyes. It was so obvious they were itching for practice to be over already and she decided that she would end their suffering early.

"Great job, you guys! That's enough for today. See you tomorrow," Katara announced with a smile as she replaced her bending water back into her waterskin.

The children bounded out of the area quickly after they gave her small bows and large smiles, their joyful laughter trailing after them as they went. They had been impatient to leave and go play since practice had started late.

There had been a Tribe meeting earlier that day concerning the exportation of their goods to the Fire Nation and the Earth Kingdom, and as the chief's daughter and Waterbending Master, Katara had attended. The Water Tribesmen's perspective on having a woman in the meetings changed when she proved herself capable of expressing her opinions, not to mention she argued better than anyone else. But that was not to say that they were all accepting or that it was always easy. There were some meetings that she was not allowed to attend, but she did not let that get to her.

_I used to be so impatient to prove myself,_ she thought absentmindedly as she made her way toward her house, _that I got myself in trouble many times, especially that time when I stole that waterbending scroll._

Katara laughed at her own foolishness.

_That ended with Zuko saving me from the pirates, then capturing me, and finally tying me to a tree._ She let out another giggle.

_Well, it was a good thing I was so impatient to learn since I came across Zuko again…_

Her cheeks heated up a bit as she remembered Zuko grabbing her wrists and then tying her to that tree. She blushed more fiercely as she remembered his warm breath near her neck and his soft voice close to her ear.

She shook her head and shoved those thoughts away.

"He was just trying to make me tell him where Aang was," she said, then smirking she added, "And it didn't even work."

"Hey there, Sugar Queen!" Toph's voice cut through Katara's musings.

"Toph!" Katara exclaimed in surprise as she turned toward the sound of the earthbender's voice. "Aang!" she gasped as she saw them both standing there beside Appa.

Had she been so lost in her thoughts that she did not even notice the ten-ton, flying sky-bison?

"Hi, Katara!" Aang cried out joyfully as he bounded up to her, his youthful face lighting up in his happiness to see her again.

"I wasn't expecting you so soon. Why didn't you send a letter saying you were arriving?" Katara asked as she approached them.

"I'm sorry, Katara, but I was just so impatient to come," Suki explained as she appeared and climbed down Appa's saddle.

"Yeah, we were so excited when Aang brought up the idea to visit!" Ty Lee exclaimed as she jumped down after Suki, making a somersault in the process and landing neatly on the ground before her feet sunk a bit on the snow.

"Suki! Ty Lee! It's so good to see you!" Katara exclaimed as she ran to hug them.

"Um, where's Sokka?" Suki asked as she pulled away from Katara. The female warrior looked away as she tried not to blush.

"Hmm? I'm not sure…" Katara began as she tried to remember where she had seen her brother last.

"Aang, Toph! When did you guys get here?" they heard Sokka call out as he marched up to them. He paused and his blue eyes widened as he spotted his girlfriend standing among his other friends.

"Suki!" he shouted out gleefully as he quickened his pace. "You're here, too! You didn't tell me you were coming in your letter!"

Katara smiled as she saw her brother and Suki run for each other, embracing and kissing one another without even thinking about who saw them. She looked away when Aang walked up to her, giving her a hug and a kiss. She tensed slightly before she relaxed.

"I missed you so much. I was so impatient to see you again," he said softly as he gave her another kiss.

Katara gave him a small smile as he pulled her away at arm's length to grin at her while Momo chattered excitedly on his shoulder. Aang still had his tattooed-shaved head and still wore his monk garb, only now he was as tall as she was.

"Me too," Katara replied quietly.

Momo jumped onto her shoulder and nuzzled her cheek. Katara giggled as his fur tickled her skin.

"I missed you, too, Momo," she cooed and laughed when the little lemur purred at her.

"Oh, so I guess nobody missed me. The poor, blind girl," Toph muttered sarcastically as she stood beside Appa with a deep scowl on her face. The others laughed as they turned to her.

"How can we not miss our favorite earthbender?" Sokka said as he and Katara both squeezed the short earthbender in a fierce hug.

"Okay, okay! I feel the love already! Let go!" Toph squeaked as she struggled against them.

"Group hug!" Ty Lee exclaimed as she wrapped her arms around the three of them.

"Great," Toph grumbled as they all hugged with her in the middle as if they were a bunch of kids.

Appa groaned and swished his large tail, causing a cold gust of wind to ruffle the group's hair and clothing.

"We missed you too Appa, buddy," Sokka told him as he turned and hugged the hairy beast. Appa responded by licking Sokka's whole head. "Yep, missed that, too."

"Hey, Snoozles, love the hair," Toph piped up with a grin.

"Really?" Sokka began as he touched his slobbered hair. "Well, I wasn't sure if I should let it grow more or…Hey!"

"Never gets old!" Toph chortled as she pointed at her sightless eyes.

The group laughed as they made their way in the snow and to the house.

* * *

Zuko walked with a dark aura as he made his way to the prison tower.

A weary-looking messenger had arrived with an urgent message a few hours ago. News of raids caused by a large group of rogues was reported to have struck some of the Fire Nation colonies in the Earth Kingdom. They not only plundered the houses and stores, but they destroyed the factories that held their manufactured goods, and worst of all, raped the women and killed anyone who came in their path. They were said to be both firebenders and earthbenders causing the trouble. This definitely was not what Zuko meant when he wanted 'the nations to work together'. And the worst part was that nobody seemed able to find them.

Zuko sighed. It seemed that problems were increasing faster than decreasing.

With silent steps, the irritated Fire Lord made his way to the farthest and most secured prison cell with his two personal guards following behind him. The stuffy air and dim light of the halls only added to his already dark mood. As he approached the guards positioned outside the cell, they straightened and bowed to him. He nodded at them before he pulled out a key from within his armor. He opened the heavy door and stepped inside before closing the door firmly behind him. The guards stood attentively outside in case their lord needed help.

With a flick of his hand, he lit up the torch that rested beside the door. Zuko blinked as he adjusted his vision to the oppressing darkness of the cell.

"Hello, Zuko. Came to pay your father a visit?" Ozai sneered as his son entered the small room. "I feel so loved," he mocked as he leaned back against the far wall, rubbing his bearded chin with the back of his hand.

_He sounds more like Azula every day,_ Zuko thought distastefully as he eyed his father across the divided prison cell.

"You know very well why I'm here," Zuko responded darkly as he crossed his arms over his chest. "I am here to ask you once more to tell me where my mother is. And if you do, maybe I'll be more lenient on you."

"Oh, Zuzu."

Zuko flinched at the nickname. Ozai laughed sinisterly at his son's reaction.

"Unless you give me my freedom, I won't tell you where your precious mother is," he said evilly as he lifted his hand and casually inspected his nails.

"Never," Zuko answered firmly. He was losing his patience, but he decided to make another effort. "But I can make your miserable life a little easier, if you just tell me where to find her."

"If I cannot have what I want, then you will not get what you want," Ozai sneered nastily as he flicked his dark, golden eyes at Zuko, "Which does not seem that important to you since you don't want to compromise."

Zuko clenched his hands. It was always the same thing. He had tried many ways in order to get information on his mother's whereabouts, but Ozai always refused to tell him. Even though he was impatient and desperate to find his mother, he could not give into Ozai's demand, seeing he would probably try to regain the throne from him and restart the war. Even though this man was his father, Zuko despised him greatly.

Not only did he have to deal with his despicable father, he also had a handful with his crazed sister. Azula's state was even worse than before, she cursed loudly and thrashed around wildly, and she had even started biting people.

"I will one way or the other find a way for you to tell me where she is," Zuko said between clenched teeth.

"Well, then, let's hope you find out how before one of us ends up dead," Ozai replied with a sinister smile.

Leaning close toward the cell bars, Zuko narrowed his eyes.

"I will find her one of these days. That I swear upon my honor."

* * *

Zuko left the prison tower after one last glare at his malevolent sire and made his way back to the palace. As he passed the entrance to the Royal Palace Garden, he turned his head and briefly glanced at the pond that rested in the middle of the luscious green grass. Memories of happy moments with his mother passed through his head. Sighing, he made his way toward his bedchamber, but since he passed Mai's room, he decided to see her.

"Who is it?" Mai's emotionless voice sounded as Zuko knocked on her door.

"It's me," he replied, hoping they could talk.

He never thought he would become that desperate to share his feelings and troubles to someone, but since his uncle was in Ba Sing Se, the only other option was Mai.

"Oh. You can come in, Zuko," she called back.

Zuko opened the door and went inside. He looked around the slightly illuminated room before he turned his gaze to the young woman that was staring silently at him.

"I hope I didn't interrupt you if you were sleeping," he said as he closed the door behind him, walking towards her bed where she was reclining. There was a thick book in her hands.

"No, I was just reading," Mai replied as she closed her book, putting it aside.

"Oh, so what's it about?" he asked as he sat on her bed.

"The history of shuriken."

"Oh, how…interesting," he muttered as he looked away to stare at a blank spot in front of him.

"Yes. So what brings you to my room?" she asked, smiling.

"I just wanted to spend some time with my girlfriend," he replied.

Mai's smile widened a little, something Zuko never seemed to get used to. It was not as bright as one of Katara's smiles. Mentally shaking his head of such thoughts, Zuko glanced sideways at the dark-haired woman beside him.

"I went to see Ozai again today," he commented quietly.

Mai's smile faded and she turned away.

"Oh, I see," she replied distantly. "And what happened?" she asked, sounding almost bored as she folded her hands placidly on her lap.

"The same as usual, he still won't tell me where my mother is," Zuko said angrily. "And that's not the only problem. We received news of raids going on in the colonies." He sighed as he lay back on the bed. "Things are getting more complicated."

Mai eyed him for a moment before she moved closer toward him, placing a thin hand on his chest, stroking it as she looked into his eyes. He stared back at her. They had been intimate a few times, but it was not what Zuko had expected. Their first time together, although it had not been their first sexual experience for either of them, was awkward for both of them and he understood that. However, the next couples of times were just…disappointing. It was terrible. Not to mention that it never lasted long, so that is why he had not gone to her for the past year. Such moments only made him feel...empty.

"I think I know how to make you forget about you troubles. How to get things off your mind," she whispered seductively as her hands traveled lower down his chest.

_'I just asked you if you were cold. I didn't ask for your whole life story.'_

He frowned at the memory.

_Forget about them?_ Zuko thought.

Forget about the people who were being hurt? Forget about his mother? Zuko frowned. He should be ecstatic about the offer like any man would, but that was not what he needed from Mai at that moment and that realization made him feel even more depressed and lonely.

Mai paused as he pulled her hand away and moved away from her. A small frown appeared on her pale features as he stood up and walked toward the door.

"It's been a hard day. I think I'm going to bed. Good night, Mai," he stated impassively as he walked out the door without glancing back at her.

With a sigh, he moved away from Mai's room and silently made his way toward his bedchamber. He greeted his guards that were posted outside his doors as they bowed before he entered his rooms.

In his private bathroom, Zuko quickly submerged himself in his hot tub. He felt miserable. His muscles relaxed a bit as the warm water soothed the knots in his body. Water always did calm him down, whether it was when he was at sea or just taking a bath.

Large, cerulean eyes sprang up in his mind as he drowsily thought about the soothing water.

* * *

"And then after we helped with their crops, Toph and I decided to visit Kyoshi Island before we arrived here. Then we all decided to come!" Aang smiled broadly as he finished his story of the past few weeks.

"Yeah, we were supposed to have stayed longer, but Twinkletoes here was all impatient to see you again, Sweetness," Toph snorted as she finished her food.

"I hadn't seen her for weeks," Aang replied with a pout, trying to defend himself. He scrunched up his nose at the sea prunes that were passed his way before he turned to smile at Katara. "I just needed to see you," he said softly as he placed his arm around her shoulders.

Kanna, who sat near the fire, frowned as she listened to the young people. She shook her head as she continued knitting.

"I'm glad to know you needed to see me, Aang, but you have responsibilities and you can't just decide to abandoned them when you have a whim," Katara chided him gently.

Kanna nodded. It seemed the young monk still needed a few more years to grow up. She smiled wryly.

"Yeah, it's not fair that you should be the only one to do whatever you want. I mean look at Sparky. He's so determined in his campaign to bring peace and help his country that you don't see him running off to have a vacation whenever he wants to," Toph remarked as she picked at her teeth.

"Speaking of that hot-tempered guy, I wonder how he's doing. I haven't seen him since four years ago," Sokka spoke up, talking with his mouth full of food.

Katara's heart skipped a beat at the mention of Zuko's name, as it always seemed to do. She could not explain why it happened, but she had begun to notice it ever since they returned from confronting Yon Rha and she began to spend more time with Zuko.

"Oh, I'm sure he's doing fine. I mean nobody is complaining about his temper," she laughed lamely as she tried to calm herself down by taking a few more bites of her food.

Toph grinned. "Well, Zuko has changed a lot since the last time you saw him. I mean _a lot_. At least, that's what I hear from the giggling servant girls."

Her grin grew larger as she felt Katara's heart race even more before she felt Katara's annoyance, probably because of the mention of the girls.

"I haven't seen Zuko and Mai for so long I want to cry," Ty Lee exclaimed as she tried to balance her cup on her head.

Katara paused as she was about to sip her tea and became silent when Ty Lee brought up Mai.

"It would be nice to have a group reunion one of these days," Suki spoke up. She paused and her cheeks reddened when she felt Sokka's hand on her knee. He smiled at her innocently when she looked up to narrow her eyes at him.

"Yeah! We should have one when Zuko's not that busy," Aang said excitedly.

"I want to see Uncle Iroh, too. I would do anything for a cup of his delicious tea," Katara said as she looked down at her own bland tea.

"Anything?" Aang asked almost inaudibly.

Nobody seemed to have noticed, but Kanna heard and she hoped she misunderstood.

"Huh?" Katara said as she turned to frown at the young airbender.

"Nothing!" he exclaimed. He blushed in embarrassment as he popped a slice of an apple into his mouth. Such thoughts were unbecoming of a monk!

"I sure miss the old man. He wasn't at the Fire Nation Palace the several times me and Aang have gone," Toph commented.

Just then, Chief Hakoda and Master Pakku arrived at the dining room.

"Oh, I'm glad we ate at Bato's house or else we would've had to go to bed hungry," Hakoda remarked cheerfully, obviously having drunk red wine, as he noticed the empty plates of food scattered all over the table.

"Yes, it looks like a group of tiger-seals invaded the place," Pakku remarked dryly, snorting.

"Oh, Gran Pakku, always so funny," Sokka laughed.

Pakku crossed his arms over his chest and snorted louder.

"But, dear, I recall how much you ate when we were young at the Northern Water Tribe," Kanna piped in with a tiny grin.

Pakku uncrossed his arms and cleared his throat.

"Well, you should see the way your son drinks wine! It seems as if he was dying of thirst," Pakku replied, trying to hide his discomfort.

"It's not my fault Fire Nation red wine is so good," Hakoda replied defensively. It had taken him a while for him to finally accept Pakku as his mother's new husband, but he respected the old waterbender nevertheless. Hakoda frowned as he added, "By the way, we are running low and the men are anxious for the next ship to come with more supplies."

"You wouldn't be running low so fast if you men didn't drink it like it was water," Katara stated with a roll of her eyes. "You're just going to have to slow down until the next Fire Nation cargo ship arrives in a couple of weeks."

The men complained under their breaths.

"So, what were you young ones talking about before we arrived?" Hakoda asked as he and Pakku sat near the fire with Kanna.

Pakku planted a kiss on her head as he sat beside his wife before he straightened himself and looked coldly around the room when the others giggled at him.

"We were talking about how great General Iroh's tea is!" Ty Lee exclaimed as she now balanced a plate on her head.

"I wonder how Iroh is doing," Pakku mused as he stroked the small beard on his chin. "I have not heard from him since our last meeting with the White Lotus a year ago."

"Uncle Iroh wrote me a letter saying he went back to Ba Sing Se after seeing that Zuko could handle himself well without him," Katara informed them as she took a sip from her tea.

"Oh, so _that's_ the real reason," Toph said as leaned back in her seat with a grin. "I knew Sparky was lying when he said Iroh went back because he couldn't stand another day away from his precious teashop. That Sparky, so modest."

"Yes, Fire Lord Zuko did seem like a formidable young man when I first met him," Hakoda remarked. "Not to mention he risked his life to save my daughter's own," he said as he smiled fondly at Katara who smiled back.

"I sure would like to meet that young man again," Gran-Gran spoke up. She looked up from her knitting to look at Katara, who blushed lightly just like she knew she would.

"Zuko wasn't always that modest or heroic, you know. He used to be very arrogant, not to mention he always lost his temper," Aang muttered with a hint of jealousy over Zuko's praise. Why did everyone start loving Zuko all of the sudden? It all started ever since Zuko became Fire Lord.

"Yes, but Miss Toph said he has changed greatly," Kanna replied as she tried to defend the young ruler she had heard so much about despite the way he had invaded their home once years ago. After all, he had rescued her son from that horrible prison and saved her granddaughter's life.

"Well, he was changed when he joined our side. And he didn't lose his temper that much, now that I think about it," Suki commented as she tapped her chin with a finger.

The younger people seemed to ponder over her words before they nodded in agreement.

"Yep, he sure learned a couple of things about being modest and honorable by spending some time with me," Sokka spoke up playfully as he wiped his mouth almost gingerly.

"Oh, yes. I'm sure he learned how to be honorable because of you, since he grew up in a palace where surely he learned no manners, and because you are such a good example. 'Oh Mighty Warrior Sokka,'" Katara teased.

"Hey!" Sokka exclaimed indignantly as the rest laughed.

Katara smiled as her family and friends continued to banter back and forth.

_Besides, it's not like Zuko ever needed to learn about honor,_ she mused in her head as she turned to stare at the glowing fire. _He was just a bit lost, but he always had it with him._

* * *

"It is said that once the raiders finish causing trouble they disappear without a trace," the messenger explained as he bowed before the Fire Lord with the advisors sitting in their respective places behind him.

"How can that be?" one advisor asked. "Surely the people are so frightened that they started making things up."

"I don't believe so," Chao reasoned. "It is said that there are some earthbenders among them, maybe they just go underground."

"But when the guards go after them they lose them easily, and they never hear or feel the earth shake, which is common when the earthbenders use their element," replied the solemn messenger. "Besides, it would take a great amount of effort, time, and a lot of noise for such a large group to be submerged underground in a couple of seconds."

Zuko furrowed his brow in confusion as he listened to what was being said. How can a large group of people disappear out of nowhere?

"I try to tell you, you idiots, we need to send more troops to the colonies," Wei spoke up gruffly. "It's probably the neighboring Earth Kingdom villages, helped by the Earth Kingdom residents in the colonies, and they probably bribed some Fire Nation deserters to side with them. I'm telling you we need to control the rebellious Earth Kingdom residents."

"No, we are not sending more troops," Zuko responded firmly, causing the men to look up at him. "We are not going to war, so there is no point on drafting men away from their families to fight something we cannot even trace."

"Well, we wouldn't be having this problem, Young One, if you had not made the stupid mistake of calling off the war in the first place," Wei sneered.

"Say that again and you will regret it, Advisor Wei!" Zuko snapped, narrowing his eyes irritably, before he let out a breath to control his temper when the entire room became deadly silent.

Once he was sure he was calm enough, the young lord continued.

"You are right, Wei. I did commit many mistakes in the past, such as siding with Ozai and Azula in capturing and bringing down the Avatar. But fortunately, I caught my mistake just in time and I made up my mind to set everything right when I joined the Avatar and his friends—now my friends also—in defeating my own cruel father and crazed sister, and better still called for peace."

The advisors nodded in approval at the way he defended himself against Wei's taunting, who only sneered even more, though he remained silent after being chastised in front of the entire Council.

With one final glare, Zuko turned away from Wei and addressed the other men that were patiently waiting for his orders.

"We do need to protect our colonies from these…barbarians, but instead of sending more soldiers we need to set up a stronger protection for the factories and for my people's homes and safety. We will send more weapons and double the guard duty. We need to set up walls around the cities and whoever enters them shall be inspected carefully. I also think that in order to grow stronger, the people themselves should learn how to protect one another, so we shall set up a training school for benders and non-benders alike. Should these raiders come again they will see that we are not a weak people and we will defend and protect each other."

_This sure has been a good coincidence,_ Zuko thought pensively. _Now both Fire Nation people and those from the Earth Kingdom can finally come together in order to protect their homes._

The men were silent as they thought about what their lord had said before they turned to each other to discuss the possibilities. Sometime later, after a few heated discussions, they turned their attention back to their Fire Lord in excited agreement.

"We will send architects and engineers to build the walls and we will also send instructors to teach firebending, sword fighting, and hand-to-hand combat. I will see if I can find an earthbender instructor as well," Zuko continued and nodded when they all agreed.

"The meeting has concluded," the young Fire Lord announced coolly.

Standing from his throne, Zuko swiftly descended from the dais and parted the fire wall before him. His advisors bowed as he passed them, but he did not pay them much heed as he made his way towards his study a few corridors away.

As he entered the room, Zuko glanced around, taking in the large bookcase filled with scrolls and tomes that covered the entire left wall, a large map of the entire Fire Nation and its colonies on the other, before his eyes landed on his large, dark wood desk resting before a great glass window. Closing the door behind him, Zuko made his way across the room and sat down at his large chair with a sigh before he began to rummage through the pile of scrolls on his desk. A few minutes later, he heard a knock at the door, and with a strained command, he waited to see who was disturbing him.

"You handled yourself very well back there, my nephew," Iroh praised from the doorway. "I knew I could trust your judgment. I'm so proud of you." He beamed as he entered the room.

"Uncle!" Zuko exclaimed as he stood up and rushed to clasp the old man's arm, but Iroh ignored the outstretched arm and hugged his nephew instead.

"I didn't know you were coming," Zuko continued after his uncle let him go. "Why didn't you send me a letter? I apologize for not receiving you at the docks. I didn't even prepare a welcoming reception."

Iroh chuckled at his nephew's uncharacteristic chatter.

"Don't worry, Prince Zu…I mean, Fire Lord Zuko. I wanted to surprise you. And by the looks of it, I succeeded!" he exclaimed. He seemed proud of himself.

"You have no idea how glad I am you are here, Uncle," Zuko confessed with a small smile.

"Ah, you don't know how happy it makes me to know that someone still cares for this old man," Iroh said with a mock sad look.

"You know there are many who are fond of you, Uncle," Zuko replied, and then added teasingly, "And I'm sure there are plenty of ladies at Ba Sing Se missing you already."

The old man sighed dramatically.

"Oh, yes. I feel so horrible leaving them behind. But making sure my nephew is doing well is more important," Iroh said warmly.

Zuko smiled. He knew he did not have to say much for his uncle to understand how glad he was that he had arrived.

"Come. I'm sure you must be desperate to have some tea after not having any for a few minutes," Zuko said lightly.

"A few minutes? It has been hours! Not to mention I ran out of ginseng tea on the ship on my way here!" Iroh complained as they made their way out of the study and toward Zuko's private quarters.

* * *

The snow glistened as the sun's soft rays struck it. Standing silently to the side, Katara watched as Aang played with the Water Tribe children. If it were not for the fact that he was taller—as tall as her now—he sometimes could be mistaken for a child. Katara sighed.

"Katara?" she heard her grandmother call from behind her. "Is something wrong, dear?"

"No, Gran-Gran," Katara answered without turning to look at the older woman as she stopped beside her.

Kanna's wrinkled brow furrowed in concern at her granddaughter's quiet reply. She followed Katara's gaze and frowned when she saw the young airbender. Then her face darkened as she remembered Aang's subtle remark at dinner the other day.

"Katara?" the old woman began softly, "I know you uphold our rules and traditions concerning young maidens guarding their virtue before marriage, but I am not too sure about Aang."

Katara turned to face her grandmother with a confused expression. Why was her grandmother talking to her about this?

"Katara?" Kanna looked into her eyes solemnly as she asked, "Has…has Aang made you do anything you shouldn't or didn't want?"

Katara's ears burned as comprehension dawned on her as she stared at her grandmother with a horrified expression.

"Gran-Gran!" she exclaimed in mortification. "How can you say that? Aang's a monk!"

"Yes, but he is also a hormone-driven, seventeen-year-old boy. I am not saying that he is a bad young man, but I am advising you to be careful. Do not do anything you will regret later and do not let anybody make you do something you do not want," Kanna advised.

"Don't worry, Gran-Gran," Katara replied, slightly embarrassed. "I respect our traditions and I know Aang does too. Everything is fine. There's nothing to worry about."

"You can't lie to me, young lady. I know you have something in your mind. So out with it," the old water tribeswoman ordered firmly as she placed her hands on her hips.

Katara suppressed a sigh as she returned her gaze to the playing Avatar and the children.

"It's just that…well, I know I should feel flattered that Aang was so impatient to see me," Katara began, "but I can't stop feeling that what he does is wrong, irresponsible."

"I see," Kanna said with a nod.

"Gran-Gran? Am I wrong for feeling this way?" the young woman asked as she turned to look at her grandmother with confused eyes.

Kanna was silent for a moment as she regarded her granddaughter.

"No, dear. It just shows how mature you have grown. It shows that you put the well-being of the world over your own selfish needs concerning Aang. But you must also try to understand him, he's still so young," she said.

_Aang is a good young boy, but what Katara needs is a_ man_, and she needs one now! Or how else will I get great-grandchildren?_ Kanna thought.

A small grin appeared on her face, causing the wrinkles on her brown skin to seem more profound.

"Yes, but he has to learn that he has responsibilities that can't just be put on hold," Katara stated and crossed her arms over her chest.

"Just like Fire Lord Zuko," Kanna added, eyeing her granddaughter closely.

"Yes, just like Zuko," Katara agreed with a nod. "Determined, responsible, honorable, dutiful, and…"

"Handsome," Kanna helpfully slipped in.

"And handsome, yes," Katara agreed before she blushed as she clamped her mouth with a hand. "No, that's not what I—"

"So you are saying that the Fire Lord is not handsome?" Kanna taunted innocently.

"No, of course he's handsome…well, actually since the last time I saw him I thought he was, but I haven't seen him in years, so I don't know anymore, but from what I've heard he is…" Katara rambled on nervously before she clamped her mouth close again.

Kanna only grinned bigger and she held back a giggle. For some time, she had been suspecting that her granddaughter thought more about the young Fire Lord than she realized.

"But that is not the point," Katara continued as she waved her hand in the air. "The point is that Zuko's an example of responsibility, that's all I see," she finished as she looked back at Aang.

"Yes, I'm sure," Kanna replied with a smile.

Growing concerned again she said, "Katara, I'm very proud that you care for the well-being of others before your own, but I want you to know that there are times when we must also think of ourselves, of our own happiness, even if it goes against the wishes of others, because in the end you will only live with regrets and sorrows that can never be fixed."

Katara did not know what to say to her Gran-Gran's words, so she only nodded as they made their way back home.

* * *

"I never thought I would say this, but I sure did miss your tea, Uncle," Zuko remarked coolly as he sipped the soothing tea his uncle had brewed.

Across from him, sitting on a cushion beside the low table in his anteroom, his uncle beamed at him.

"Oh, Nephew, it makes me so happy to hear you say that," Iroh responded with a wide smile. "Chao informed me you have kept up with your training."

"Yes, I promised myself that I would learn everything there is about firebending," Zuko responded with a nod.

"Well, it's not like you have much to learn. You became a master when you trained the Avatar," Iroh commented as he took a sip from his teacup.

Zuko gave him a small smile.

Iroh's face then grew serious as he looked down at his tea.

"Has he talked?" he asked quietly.

"No, he hasn't," Zuko said darkly, suppressing a growl as his hands clenched around his teacup.

Iroh sighed. His brother was as selfish and cruel as ever.

"And Azula? How is she?"

Zuko let out a long breath.

"The same, she hasn't changed much. I received a monthly report that she's very aggressive and curses at everyone that comes her way," he recounted solemnly.

Seeing Zuko grow into a dark mood, Iroh decided to change the topic.

"Tell me about these raids I heard at the meeting room. It sounds serious," he said as he poured more tea into his cup.

As Zuko recounted the news, Iroh again frowned into his cup. His nephew was so young and he already had so many things to deal with. If only there was a way for him to help Zuko. Before Iroh had time to open his mouth as his nephew finished, a quiet knock was heard at the door.

"Come in," Zuko ordered as he took another sip of his tea, knowing full well who it was that stood on the other side of the door.

"Hello, General Iroh. I just heard you were here," Mai greeted in a dispassionate tone as she stepped into the room and sat on the other side of the table.

"Yes, I just arrived a few hours ago, and I could not wait to share tea with my nephew," Iroh told the young noblewoman.

"I'm sure you would be happy to drink with anybody and anywhere as long as it's tea," Mai replied without really looking at him.

Iroh countered smoothly with, "Perhaps you are right about drinking tea anywhere."

_But I sure won't drink with just anybody,_ he continued mentally.

The old firebender eyed the noblewoman coolly as she declined some tea when Zuko asked her if she wanted any. It had surprised him when his nephew had sent him a letter a few months ago saying that Mai had moved into the palace, and he was not sure he liked the idea of her living with Zuko.

"So, Uncle, how is the Jasmine Dragon coming along?" Zuko asked. He pointedly ignored the way Mai rolled her eyes.

Iroh smiled mischievously as he turned to his nephew.

"Oh, it's going great! I have so many customers that I now have to take reservations. Sometimes the waiting list is so long people have to wait for days, even weeks, to get a seat!" He hid a grin when he saw Mai trying to hide a yawn. "One time I was so enchanted by a lovely lady that I almost burned the pastries! It was very amusing, I tell you. I wrote that to Lady Katara on my last letter," he added almost casually.

Iroh noticed as Zuko perked up at the mention of the waterbending maiden just like he knew he would.

"Does Katara correspond with you often, Uncle?" Zuko asked, trying to sound uninterested as he drank more tea.

"Quite often! She writes the loveliest letters. And her calligraphy is so adorable. I'll show you one of her letters later," Iroh replied. "But her writing is not the only virtue she has. She was always a pretty and lovely girl. I'm sure that now she has grown even prettier and lovelier as a young woman since her birthday was about a month ago. What do you think, Nephew?" Iroh asked innocently.

For some reason he could not explain, Zuko felt his body warm slightly as he thought of Katara becoming a woman.

"Uh…I'm sure she has, Uncle," he replied as he placed his teacup down on the table and looked out the window.

Iroh had to hide his growing grin behind his teacup as he noticed Mai's irritation of Katara's praise. It was just so easy since he knew Mai disliked Katara—even though she tried to hide it—and so he made it a point to remind his nephew of the waterbender every so often.

"If you would excuse me, I had a long day and I think I will go relax in my room," Mai excused herself coldly, then in a whisper she addressed Zuko, "If you need anything, I will be waiting."

Zuko nodded, half listening to her as he turned his attention to his uncle as she exited.

"So, it seems Mai hasn't changed that much during these years," Iroh remarked nonchalantly as he sipped his tea.

"She has grown taller," Zuko offered lamely.

"Yes, I can see that, but she is still so…serious," Iroh put it in nicely.

Zuko didn't reply since he could not argue with that.

"So how is your relationship going, by the way?" Iroh asked curiously

"It's going fine," Zuko replied stiffly, returning to his old withdrawn self.

"Have you seen any of your other friends?" the old firebender asked. This seemed to pick his nephew up.

"Well, I saw Aang a few weeks ago for a meeting between some Earth Kingdom governors and me. And Toph visited a couple of months ago, since she sometimes travels with Aang in the Earth Kingdom," Zuko replied.

"Ah, Miss Bei Fong. I haven't seen the lovely lady for a long time," Iroh mused with a smile.

Zuko inwardly grinned as he remembered the little rough earthbender who enjoyed teasing and irritating him. He knew that was just her way for being friendly and it was actually…fun. He sometimes even joined in her little games, though very rarely, mostly so she would leave him alone. That would make her laugh and punch him in the arm as she would say, 'Not too shabby, Sparky, not too shabby.'

"What about the young Water Tribe Warrior and his Kyoshi girlfriend?" Iroh asked again.

"I haven't seen either of them since the time we were last in Ba Sing Se," Zuko replied. "They are also busy reconstructing their homes."

"I see. So…" Iroh began, trying not to make his curiosity too obvious, "that means you also have not seen the lovely Miss Katara?" The old man could barely hide his amusement as he noticed Zuko flush faintly.

"No, I haven't seen her either," Zuko responded, quickly recovering his placid facial expression. "Besides, we are all too busy to be having reunions."

_I was too busy to even attend her birthday party,_ he added mentally.

Iroh frowned. He began to worry for his nephew. Zuko was still a young man, and instead of having a great time and enjoying his youth, he was burying himself in so much work that even an older man would not be able to handle.

One thing was very obvious: Zuko was not happy.

_Well, I shall fix that soon enough,_ Iroh mused with a twinkle in his eye as a plan began to form in his head.

"So, Nephew, has Lieutenant Jee left to the Southern Water Tribe with the new supplies yet?"

"I promoted Jee to Admiral now. He has proved himself worthy of it. But, no, he is departing tomorrow morning. Why?" Zuko asked suspiciously.

"Oh, I just wanted to have a cup of tea with him before he left. Well, Nephew, I must be getting old since I can barely keep my eyes open," Iroh said and yawned loudly. "I'll see you tomorrow morning for practice. Good night."

_Now I need to plan a surprise!_ he thought excitedly as stood up and made his way to the door.

"Good night, Uncle," Zuko answered as Iroh left.

He was a bit puzzled that his uncle had not begged him for a game of Pai Sho.

_Maybe it's just the long trip that got to him._

But considering it was his witty uncle, Zuko had a feeling he was up to something.

* * *

Iroh made his way to the room his nephew had remodeled and had given to him for whenever he visited. There was a huge grin on his face. He told a servant who passed by to ask Admiral Jee to see him. Iroh then entered his room and sat down to write a letter, smiling smugly to himself as he finished and sealed it.

There was a knock on the door and Iroh invited whoever was outside to enter. He looked up as the door opened.

"General Iroh, it is good to see you again," Jee greeted as he bowed before he crossed the room to grasp the retired general's arm.

"Jee! You look better than ever," Iroh chuckled amiably as he shook the admiral's arm. "So I heard Zuko promoted you to Admiral. Congratulations."

He motioned for the admiral to take a seat on the small table and he immediately poured them both a cup of tea.

"Thank you. I will always be grateful to Fire Lord Zuko for entrusting me with such an honor," Jee responded respectfully before he smiled, "and I am very proud to serve him."

_Nothing like that haughty and imbecile Zhao,_ Iroh mused.

"I'm glad Fire Lord Zuko has proven himself worthy of such praise," the retired general said, sipping his tea.

"May I ask why you have called for me?" Jee asked as he took up his own cup and sipped the hot and sweet liquid.

"I heard you also export the Fire Nation's goods to the Southern Water Tribe," Iroh began before he saw Jee nod. "So how were you received?"

"Well, there was some tension the first day as we disembarked, but Lady Katara stepped in and helped settle the whole situation," Jee recounted with a smile. "Now, she is the one in charge of the Fire Nation imports in her tribe."

"Ah, Miss Katara is such a wonderful young lady. Zuko informed me you are leaving to the Southern Water Tribe tomorrow morning," Iroh said before retrieving the letter that he had finished writing from his pocket.

"Yes, sir, we leave a little after dawn. Do you need anything?" Jee asked as he eyed the letter in the older man's hand.

"Well, as a matter of fact, I do, Admiral Jee," Iroh replied with a smile. "You see, I was thinking that since my nephew is working so hard, he needs a little distraction. Therefore, I wrote this letter to Miss Katara hoping that she—that they all come to pay a little visit to Zuko. And I was hoping that you give it to her since you were going over there. It will save this poor old man some time."

"Of course, General Iroh, it will be my pleasure. And it will make Fire Lord Zuko happy to be around people his own age, around his friends," Jee said, almost as cheerful as Iroh, except his facial expression remained calm.

"Why, thank you so very much," Iroh said as he handed the letter to the admiral. "If they accept, I was wondering if you could bring them as soon as possible on your ship since it will be faster."

Jee readily agreed as he tucked the letter into his armor.

"Good, but I beg you not to say a word of this to my nephew. I want it to be a surprise." Iroh grinned.

Jee promised not to tell a soul and Iroh nodded with a pleased smile.

"Well, now that that's settled…how about a game of Pai Sho?"

* * *

"Look! The Fire Nation cargo ship has arrived!" one of the Southern Water Tribe lookouts exclaimed.

The women sighed with relief at the prospect of more coal for the cooking fires and more fruits. The men cheered at the prospect of more wine and metal.

"Man, I never thought that wine would make the Fire Nation so loved," Toph joked sarcastically as she heard the commotion while she leaned on Katara's arm as they made their way to the docks.

"The Fire Nation isn't loved!" Sokka exclaimed with a sniff. "They're just appreciated."

"Oh, Sokka, please," Katara muttered as she rolled her eyes as they arrived at the frozen pier.

She stood there eagerly, waiting. She watched as Admiral Jee emerged from the ship, but when nobody else seemed to be coming down after him, Katara was again slightly disappointed, which confused her.

Toph, who was hanging onto Katara for support, noticed how the waterbender's heartbeat, which was previously racing, slowed down dramatically.

"It seems it's only Jee we'll be entertaining today," she heard Sokka say. "Good, that won't be hard."

Toph grinned. _So, Sugar Queen was expecting someone else, huh?_

Katara smiled as the firebender finally spotted them.

"Admiral Jee," she said, bowing respectfully as he approached them. "I'm glad you have arrived. I hope you and your crew had a safe trip."

Jee smiled warmly as he returned the bow.

"Yes, thank you, Lady Katara. We brought more of the usual supplies as well as some new things."

"You did bring new weapons to trade, didn't you, Jee?" Sokka asked as if he were in charge.

Jee smiled and nodded at the young warrior.

"Well, I'm sure you must be exhausted. I will see that your men are taken care of while we go inside the house," Katara spoke up.

Jee nodded his gratitude before he ordered his men to unload the cargo.

* * *

Zuko watched his uncle as the old man smiled to himself while they ate breakfast. For the past few weeks Iroh had been acting strange, such as going shopping more than regularly and making sure all the rooms were clean and tidy. Not to mention he kept on chuckling and smiling to himself every time an irritated Zuko retired to his room.

"Uncle? What are you up to?" Zuko asked as he regarded the old man carefully.

"Whatever do you mean, Nephew? I'm just drinking my jasmine tea," Iroh answered innocently as he raised his cup to show he was speaking the truth.

"He means you've been acting strange, General Iroh," Mai spoke up coldly.

Iroh stiffened at the hard way Mai always said his name.

_Well, I guess I had that coming for every time I mentioned Miss Katara,_ the old man mused with a mental chuckle.

"Oh, it's nothing to worry about. Don't mind this old man," Iroh replied and grinned into his cup when Mai snorted softly.

"Uncle, tell me what you're up to," Zuko said again.

But as before Iroh evaded the question by replying, "Patience is a virtue, my nephew. You will find out soon enough."

* * *

"Ah, Admiral Jee, you have no idea how glad we are that you have arrived. We were almost running out of wine. Soon there would have been a riot!" Hakoda exclaimed humorously as they all finished lunch.

Jee only grinned at him.

"So, Admiral Jee," Katara spoke up, embarrassed by her father's dumb joke. "How long are you planning to stay?"

"I am planning on leaving tomorrow morning," Jee answered simply.

"Tomorrow morning?! But you barely arrived from weeks out at sea," Katara exclaimed, concerned.

"Yes, but I have urgent business to attend to," Jee responded, though he was grateful for the young water tribeswoman's concern.

"What business is that?" Aang asked as he played with Momo's tail while the lemur chattered loudly.

"General Iroh has asked me to take something important to the Fire Nation Palace as soon as possible," Jee answered, grinning slightly.

"Iroh's back in the Fire Nation Palace?" Toph piped in as she sat up straight from her previous slouched position.

"Yes, and he asked me to give this letter to you personally, Lady Katara," the admiral said, finally producing the letter from inside of his chest armor and handing it to her. He eagerly waited for her reaction as well as for the others'.

Katara took the letter eagerly.

_What has Uncle Iroh written to me now?_ she thought as she quickly broke the seal, opening it and reading it out loud.

_My Dear Miss Katara,_

_I hope you find yourself lovely and well as always. As Jee might have informed you, I am visiting the Fire Nation—or more precise, my nephew. I found out that a few of your other friends are currently visiting the Southern Water Tribe, and so, I also address this letter to them._

"How did he know you guys were here?" Sokka interrupted.

"Shut it, Snoozles, let Sugar Queen finish!" Toph hissed and punched his arm, smirking when he yelped.

_As you all know the postwar events have left us all busy, but I believe it has come harder upon my nephew, Fire Lord Zuko. It has a nice ring to it, does it not?_

They laughed.

_And so seeing that he needs a little break, and that he would probably rather play the tsungi horn than admit it, I want to ask you if you could pay a little visit to cheer him up. Besides, you all need a little break yourselves. You may be wondering why Zuko did not send you an official letter and that is because he does not know, and because it's not an official visit, it's a surprise reunion! I hope you consider it, and if you do accept, Jee will gladly escort you to the Fire Nation on the ship. Well, then, I hope to drink tea and play Pai Sho with you soon._

_General Iroh (Dragon of the West)_

"Sweet," Toph said as soon as Katara finished reading.

"I haven't been to the Fire Nation since forever! I can almost taste the fireflakes!" Sokka exclaimed excitedly while drool practically fell from his mouth.

"I want to go! I do miss home. I can't wait!" Ty Lee cried out enthusiastically.

Excited chatter resounded throughout the room at the idea of a reunion and a visit to the Fire Nation. But Katara was not listening to what the others were saying.

_Go back to the Fire Nation? Meet Zuko again?_ Katara's heart raced at the thought of seeing Zuko once more. _Why am I even reacting like this?_

"Well, I have to see that the ship is ready to depart. We are leaving early in the morning," Jee told them as he exited with Hakoda, Kanna and Pakku.

"Hurry! We must go pack right now," Suki instructed.

They all jumped from their seats and started to run towards their rooms to pack, all except for Katara, who was still holding the letter in her hands.

"Katara? Are you all right?" Aang asked as he noticed her sitting there as if in a trance.

"Huh? Oh, yes. I'm fine."

"It's okay if you don't want to go. I'll tell the others that we—"

"No!" she shouted before she cleared her throat and continued more quietly, "No, I do want to go. I mean…it's just that I'm excited to see Zu—the Fire Nation Palace again after spending so much time here," she said, quickly catching her slip.

"Oh. Okay then. We should pack now. Jee said they were embarking early. Do you need any help packing?" Aang smiled mischievously as he leaned forward to kiss her.

Katara pulled back quickly.

"Um…No, I can do it myself," she said with a small smile as she left the dining room, leaving Aang frowning after her.

Katara quickly made her way through the icy corridors of her home in a daze as she tried to figure out what her reaction to the news meant.

"So, Sweetness," Toph piped in as Katara reached her room, making the waterbender jump. "Are you excited to see the Fire Nation Palace again or excited to see something else?"

_Or someone else?_ the blind earthbender added mentally.

"I'm also looking forward to seeing Uncle Iroh and Zuko again," Katara answered as she opened her door.

"Me too…me too," Toph said, grinning widely as she left.

Katara stared after the grinning earthbender with a confused look, but she shrugged as she entered her room and immediately started to look through her clothes. She frowned. Most of her clothes were too warm for the Fire Nation weather.

Oh, well. She sighed as she held up a warm parka before she shook her head and placed it back in her drawer.

In a few minutes, she had everything packed. She looked around her room just in case she missed something.

Then her eye caught the silver rose hairpin resting innocently on the nightstand. She walked over to it and picked it up. Chuckling, she remembered the faces of all the other girls as they saw the hairpin. She could not help feeling smug at the other girls' envious stares, wishing the Fire Lord would give them such a beautiful and expensive gift.

For her previous birthdays, Zuko had always sent a letter and a real rose. She had never seen such beautiful roses before, but she loved them. The dark red flower would always stand out in her white and blue room as it rested in a small vase in her nightstand. But for her nineteenth birthday, he had sent her this rose, one that would not wither away as time went by, one that shone brightly with the sunshine and the moonlight. She did not know why, but after her mother's necklace, the rose hairpin was her favorite possession.

Katara placed it carefully among her other belongings in her pack. She could not leave it behind.

* * *

Zuko could not take it anymore. He hated not knowing what was going on, especially in his own palace.

"Uncle! I demand you tell me what is going on right this instant!" Zuko bellowed as he stormed into his uncle's room without even knocking.

"Whatever do you mean, Nephew? I told you that it is nothing," Iroh replied calmly, unaffected by his nephew's outburst.

"Nothing? You are cleaning the guest rooms and polishing the halls! The servants do not need more work piled on them. Not to mention that I found out you ordered more food for the kitchen than necessary. Don't tell me it's so I can eat healthier because I won't buy that!" Zuko barked.

Then, lowering his head to face Iroh's own, he added coolly, "Uncle. Tell me. What are you brewing?"

Iroh laughed as he placed down the scroll he had been reading.

"Zuko, you make it sound like I'm planning the end of the world! So what if I ordered the rooms and halls to be cleaned, there is nothing wrong with cleanliness. And the food is just in case something unexpected happens. But as I told you before there is nothing wrong, quite the contrary. Now, calm yourself and tell me about your day."

Zuko let out a long breath and ran a hand down his face as his uncle poured him some tea.

"I think Azula has gotten worse than she already was before. In a way it pains me to see her like that," he said with a sigh as he sat heavily next to the little table.

Iroh nodded sympathetically, Azula was his niece after all, and Zuko's only sister.

Putting his head in his hands, Zuko added dejectedly, "I went to see Ozai again today."

Iroh lifted his eyebrow expectantly.

"He still won't say anything," the young man growled out.

Iroh let out a long sigh.

"I feel like I'm running out of time. I don't know what to do," Zuko whispered anxiously.

"We knew it wouldn't be easy, Zuko," Iroh responded comfortingly. "But Ozai will break one of these days. Just have hope and patience."

"Hope?! Patience?!" Zuko roared, slamming his hand on the table, causing the tea to spill. "Dammit! Years have passed, and Agni knows how many more will come, before I know where she is! And that…bastard won't touch his heart to tell his own son where his mother is! His own wife!" Zuko looked down at his uncle, trying to calm himself down, "I don't know how long I could take this without knowing where she is. Without knowing if she is well. Without knowing if she is even…alive."

Iroh saddened at his nephew's desperation.

"Zuko," he said calmly as he placed a comforting hand on his nephew's tensed shoulder, "I know how hard it is to lose someone. When I lost my wife and my son, Lu Ten, I felt like my world had stopped. But if I had not kept my hopes and spirits up, I probably would have fallen to despair, and I probably would not be here today, with you. Fire Lord Zuko, do not lose hope. You will find a means that will help you find Ursa when you least expect it. Trust me."

Zuko was silent for a few minutes before he let out another sigh and his shoulders relaxed.

"Thank you, Uncle," Zuko said in a low, sad voice before he straightened himself.

Iroh patted his shoulder.

"Everything will come out fine in the end, Zuko, you'll see."

* * *

**A/N: Thank you for reading!**

**~alwaysZutarian**


	3. Reopened Wounds

**Sorry for posting this chapter up twice. There were some things that needed to be changed so that is why I uploaded it again. For those of you wondering what happened to the rest of the chapters, please read the info I posted on my livejournal account (link is on my profile).**

**Enjoy!**

**Thanks to my Beta reader Jezebel. V. Sterling for her awesome job!**

ATLA doesn't belong to me because if it did, there would've been too much Zutara in the series! :3

* * *

Chapter Three

**_Reopened Wounds_**

* * *

The sun was bright in the sky as the Fire Nation ship sailed over the blue ocean. Weeks had passed since they left the Southern Water Tribe. Getting to the Fire Nation would have taken longer if they had ridden on Appa all the way, since a ship did not need rest.

Leaning against the ship's railing, Katara inhaled the salty ocean breeze.

Frantically, the gang had rushed to get their things packed and ready before the ship departed. Sokka left instructions for the production of his inventions and Master Pakku had agreed to substitute Katara's waterbending class.

Looking at the sea, Katara remembered as they said goodbyes to the Tribe people. Kanna had approached her grandchildren and said, _'Have fun, enjoy yourselves, and remember to cover up when it gets chilly.'_

_'Gran-Gran, it's the Fire Nation! We won't suffer from frostbite. Don't worry your pretty, white head,'_ Sokka had said and laughed when Kanna scowled at him.

Then turning towards Katara, she had continued, _'Say hello to the Fire Lord for me, Katara. And do whatever you can to cheer him up.'_

Katara looked over the calm sea as she puzzled over this. Why was Gran-Gran all of the sudden interested in Zuko? And why will she tell _her_ to cheer _him_ up?

Appa groaned contently as he lay on a big pile of hay on the ship's deck as it made its way. Apparently, riding a ship without having to fly for days made him happy.

"Yes, I know, buddy, but don't get too used to it," Aang said as he rubbed his large friend's nose. Appa only grunted in reply before he let out a wide yawn.

"How much longer are we gonna take?" Katara heard her brother complain. "It's been weeks. I want some food!"

"Sokka, you're already getting fed well," Suki told him, putting an arm around his so she could lean on him. Her face looked a little pale.

"Yeah, but I want some real food not ship food!" Sokka explained as he wrapped his arm around her.

Katara rolled her eyes at his words just like the others did.

"I feel sorry for the palace cooks. They will probably quit their jobs in a few weeks," Aang quipped.

"I say a few days," Toph drawled and grinned, making them all burst into laughter.

Sokka only scowled and raised his chin.

Ty Lee sighed as she added, "No, but seriously, you guys, I can't wait to see my home again. And Mai, too!"

"Oh, yeah. Mai, the dull, dagger-throwing girl. Hope she doesn't mind us coming because we are going to have a blast!" Sokka exclaimed as he began to count all the activities that they could do once they arrived.

Jee appeared as Sokka counted activity number nine.

"We will be arriving at the Fire Nation capital tomorrow. I advise you to get your things ready," Jee told them, then smiling, he added, "I'm glad you accepted to visit Fire Lord Zuko. He has been working too hard for such a young man."

"Well, glad you called! We're the best in having fun!" Sokka said as he began to recount his list while the rest groaned.

_Tomorrow? We will arrive at the Fire Nation Palace tomorrow?_ Katara thought to her herself. _In just one day I will see Zuko again._ Her heart raced before she frowned once more at her reaction.

"Aang! You want to practice waterbending? I haven't practiced since we left the Southern Water Tribe," Katara called out in order to avoid her confusing thoughts—thoughts that seemed to be recurring a lot lately.

"Well, Suki, let me help you pack," Sokka spoke up. Both of them were grinning as they made their way to her room.

"Sure thing, Katara," Aang answered happily as he wrapped his arms around her and leaned down to kiss her.

"She said _waterbending_ practice not kissing practice, Twinkletoes," Toph called out, a bit annoyed.

Katara thanked her silently as Aang moved away with a sheepish grin.

* * *

Zuko looked at himself in the mirror as he finished shaving, checking to see if he had missed any spots and pushing his short hair out of his eyes. Then his gaze settled on his scar, the only place where he did not have to worry about shaving.

He used to always get upset every time he would see his scarred face in a mirror, but now he had learned to accept it—well, at least a little bit. It was a part of who he was and where his destiny began. Besides, it appeared that not everyone was disgusted by it. At least one person in particular, one with blue eyes, was not.

He had never let anybody touch his scar, like when Song tried to, or more often, nobody wanted to touch it, like Mai. However, it was different with Katara, he allowed her touch it and she wanted to.

Zuko's fingers traced the edge of the rough skin. He remembered the way she had softly touched it, her thumb resting on his lips, when they were under Ba Sing Se. She did not seem repulsed by it when she did. She actually had kept her fingers there for a few moments before they were interrupted.

_'Maybe you could be free of it. I have healing abilities,'_ she had said. Even if not literally, she did in a way heal him.

Zuko sighed as he lowered his hand. Her touch had felt good…comforting.

_Why am I thinking about her? Again,_ he asked himself with a shake of his head.

He left the grand bathroom, put on his training pants, and then a light shirt since he usually practiced shirtless since it got very hot. Once he was ready, he headed out of his bedchamber and passed his anteroom just as one of the doors to his chambers opened.

"Zuko, where are you going?" Iroh asked as he closed the large door behind him.

"Practice, Uncle," Zuko replied as he made his way towards the door.

"But you can't go! You will get all exhausted and sweaty!" Iroh exclaimed, pushing Zuko back into his antechamber.

"That's what happens when you are training hard," Zuko answered in an annoyed tone. Sometimes he doubted his uncle's sanity.

"But you can't greet your guests like that! Go change," Iroh persisted.

"Guests? What are you talking about, Uncle?" Zuko asked, moving towards the door again, now confused and irritated.

"Well, the Avatar and his friends, of course," Iroh said as if stating the obvious.

"What?!" Zuko exclaimed as he whirled around to face his uncle, a gleam of hope in his eyes.

"Oh, did I forget to tell you?" Iroh asked innocently. "Jee sent me a message stating they will arrive today."

"_Today?_ And you tell me _now_?" Zuko fumed, but deep down he could feel excitement building, something he had not felt for a long time.

_I'm going to see Katara again,_ he mentally exclaimed before he frowned and shook his head.

"I wanted it to be a surprise. And as usual, it worked. Surprise!" Iroh said as he beamed, rather proud of himself.

"So, this is what you've been hiding and making a bustle over, isn't it?" Zuko asked as he quickly returned to his bedchamber.

"Ah, Nephew, always so perceptive," Iroh said with an amused chuckle.

Zuko resisted the urge to roll his eyes as he search for something to wear.

"Well, enough chitchat and put on some clothes," Iroh ordered. "You surely cannot greet them in just your training pants. I'm sure some ladies will be very uncomfortable. And distracted."

The old firebender laughed as Zuko's good ear reddened.

* * *

"There it is! I see it!" Ty Lee cried out as she jumped around the deck of the ship.

"Wow, I never really did actually look at it. It's amazing," Suki breathed out as they neared the Fire Nation Capital port.

"It's even more amazing since Zuko ordered for the restoration of the cities' old buildings," Toph informed them proudly.

Katara's pulse quickened as they drew closer. _This is it. We are finally here._

At the dock, Zuko calmly gazed at the approaching ship, even though inwardly he felt somewhat nervous.

_This is it. They are finally here._ After almost four years, he was going to finally see his friends again.

"Why are they taking so long to disembark?" he demanded irritably.

"The ship is actually going at normal speed, Zuko," Mai said as she looked at the ship without interest.

"Things seem to always go slow when one is impatient," Iroh said to Zuko, "Especially since you are so impatient to see Kat—your friends again." He grinned as Zuko flushed slightly at his 'slip'.

Mai only yawned and checked the small daggers up her sleeves. Iroh looked at his nephew in alarm, but Zuko only shrugged.

"Look there's Mai! And Iroh!" Ty Lee exclaimed as she leaned against the side of the ship, her long hair whipping around her.

"Wow, look at Zuko!" Suki exclaimed as she pointed ahead. Sokka grumbled at her enthusiasm.

Katara followed Suki's arm pointing at the three figures standing on the dock along with some guards and citizens standing a few feet behind them.

She stared in amazement as her eyes settled on Zuko. He had grown much, much taller. His black hair was pulled back by his fire crown and he was wearing a slightly elegant black and red robe and armor. He had really changed into quite a young man, she mused. His shaved, chiseled jaw had a fine structure. His nose and his one good eyebrow were even more defined and his scar only added more to his complexion. He looked so regal, the very picture of a true Fire Lord.

Katara's heart skipped a beat as she noticed his smile. It was not a wide one, but it was genuine…warm.

_Oh, he is so very handsome,_ she thought before she blushed as she remembered her conversation with Gran-Gran.

She was brought back to reality as she noticed Mai put her arms through Zuko's before he turned to look at the tall woman. Katara backed away from the railing, ashamed of herself for thinking in such a way. She raised her hand to clasp her necklace only to meet her skin. She panicked when she felt that it was not there. She looked around herself, hoping it had fallen near her, then remembering she left it on her bed as she bathed and changed, she ran to the room she had occupied on the ship.

"Mai!" Ty Lee yelled as she jumped off the ship before the crew even lowered the ramp.

"Ty Lee? I didn't know you were coming," Mai said in her usual voice, but with a soft smile on her face. She calmly returned the hug the enthusiastic acrobat gave her as soon as she had approached her. They talked with each other while the rest greeted the young Fire Lord.

"Zuko! How are you?" Aang exclaimed as he jumped off and floated toward the young man with Momo chatting excitedly behind him.

Sokka, Suki, and Toph walked down the ramp and quickly made their way toward the group.

"Iroh!" Toph exclaimed as she stomped towards the kind old man, giving him a bear hug, and then whispering, she said, "What took you so long?"

Iroh only chuckled as he patted her head.

Finding her necklace, Katara raced back toward the deck and then the ramp, stopping below it. She looked at the group and noticed that Aang barely came up to Zuko's shoulder and would probably stay that way.

"I am glad that you have accepted to visit us," Zuko said, bowing towards Sokka and Suki, trying to contain his sudden excitement.

"Oh, come now, Zuko, enough with the formal crap!" Sokka exclaimed, then grinning he yelled, "Group hug!"

Zuko stiffened slightly as Aang, Toph, Sokka, Suki, and even Iroh, surrounded him. Finally catching up, Katara smiled in amusement as she saw Zuko stiffen the same way he did when the same thing happened back at the royal beach house in Ember Island before the war ended. The crowd laughed quietly behind their hands as they watched what was happening.

"Uh…thanks?" Zuko said uncomfortably as he resisted the urge to throw them all away from him. He never had been comfortable with such displays of affection.

_Wait. Something is missing,_ he thought with a frown.

Iroh watched with amused eyes as Zuko looked above the heads of the others.

_Where is Katara?_ Zuko mentally asked as a pang began to form in his chest. _Is she even here? Did she come? I shouldn't have gotten excited. I shouldn't have—_

Zuko's golden eyes widened as he finally saw her. Katara was standing behind the others, her hands clasped placidly before her. She had her brown hair in a loose bun, her trademark hair loops at the front of her head. She was wearing soft, blue clothes just like the one she wore at the end of the war, but these clothes defined the curves of her body even more.

Her height was not the only thing that had grown during these years, he observed with heated eyes. She had lovely, wide hips, a thin waist, and defined breasts. Zuko blinked.

_Oh, yes, definitely a lovely, young woman,_ he mused, but then berated himself for such ungentlemanly thoughts.

His heart raced faster as his eyes settled on her face. She had dark, long eyelashes, her usual petite nose, and plump lips. Oh, but her lovely smile and her beautiful, blue eyes.

_Oh, she's beautiful,_ he sighed wistfully.

He was brought out of his reverie as the group finally let him go to talk to Iroh and he mentally shook his head to clear his thoughts. He walked over to her a bit nervously, though he hid it well. It would not do for the Fire Lord to act foolishly in front of his subjects.

Toph touched Iroh's arm and both grinned.

_Calm yourself. Don't do anything stupid. You are the Fire Lord,_ Zuko commanded himself as he stepped regally up to her.

"Hello, Katara…I'm glad you're here." Zuko cursed his lame greeting.

"I'm glad to be here, too, Zuko," Katara replied as she smiled at him.

Zuko stifled a sigh of relief.

"So, I—" Zuko was about to say when Katara suddenly wrapped her arms around him in a hug. "Um…I…hm…"

"Well, everybody got to hug you, so it's my turn," the Water Tribe woman replied with a giggle.

_Don't just stand there, you idiot! Hug her back!_ Zuko heard a voice that sounded so much like Toph yell.

_You don't have to tell me twice!_ Zuko argued back.

Katara blushed despite herself as Zuko returned the embrace, his strong, muscular arms surrounding her. Zuko felt his pulse race as he placed his arms around her feminine waist, amazed at how great it felt to have her form pressed against his. Both remembered the first time they had hug like this, when they had returned from searching for the murderer of Katara's mother. When Katara had finally forgiven Zuko.

As they stood there for a while, the crowd began to murmur, but neither noticed until Mai stepped in and interrupted them. The dark-haired noblewoman quickly pulled Zuko back, ignoring the way he glared indignantly at her.

"It sure is a surprise to see you again, Katara," she said, her voice cool and emotionless.

Katara only smiled. "It's great to see you, too, Mai."

"So, Sparky, did you miss me?" Toph asked as she stepped between Zuko and Mai. She ignored the way Mai huffed at her. "Be honest now."

Zuko smiled down at her. "You have no idea how much, Toph. I was depressed for weeks."

Toph punched his arm.

"Oh, shut it, you," she snorted with a silly smile on her face.

Katara smiled. She could see that they really got along well.

"By the way, I like the color of your clothes. It brings out the color of your eyes," Toph remarked.

Zuko snorted amusedly.

"I'm sure you do, Toph," he responded casually.

Katara grinned, too.

_Zuko isn't that stupid,_ she thought.

"Damn. I'll get you next time!" Toph said, chuckling. "I shouldn't be comparing you to Snoozles, here."

"Hey!" Sokka protested as he turned around to glare at the blind earthbender.

They laughed while Zuko gave him a small sympathetic look.

"Don't you guys get tired of making fun of me all the time?" the Water Tribesman groused.

"Hmm? Nope!" Toph replied with a chortle just as everybody else, except Zuko, laughed.

Sokka scowled at them all and crossed his arms over his chest.

Just then, the crowd gasped when they saw the ten-ton, flying sky-bison land beside their young lord. The guards stood nervously by, but Appa only poked his tongue out of his mouth and licked Zuko's face, causing the spectators to relax and laugh lightly.

"Great," Zuko grumbled as he wiped the drool from his face, then rubbing Appa's nose he said, "Missed me already, huh?"

Appa groaned in reply.

Not wanting to be left behind, Momo landed on Zuko's right shoulder and nuzzled him. Zuko stroked the lemur's large ears.

"Well, all I need is for the Unagi to come and give me a pat on the back," the firebender said impassively.

The rest laughed and Zuko frowned since he had not meant to be funny.

* * *

"Now I understand why you ordered so much food, Uncle," Zuko whispered to Iroh as they all sat for dinner. Zuko grinned mentally as he watched the other two boys eat. Yes, just like old times.

Sokka and Aang devoured everything in sight with Aang mostly getting the vegetable plates—of course he ate a bit more carefully than the blue-eyed warrior did.

"Ohh, this is good…I like this…Ah, I missed this…Ahh, too hot…Spicy chicken!" Sokka kept exclaiming as he stuffed food into his mouth.

Katara and Suki's faces were red with embarrassment. Mai had a look of pure disgust on her face.

"You guys…slow down," Katara told them with a scowl.

"It's alright, Miss Katara. It makes me glad to know that our food is greatly appreciated," Iroh reassured the girls.

Aang and Sokka grinned broadly at him and kept on eating.

"Yeah, girls, calm down. We can't help it," Sokka said as he refilled his cup with more red wine, "Missed this, too."

Zuko smiled as he surveyed the people around him. They were eating in the royal family dining room, which he had not used since his mother's disappearance and his banishment. It felt nice to use it again, especially with his friends.

Katara stared at her plate, having lost her appetite. She glanced to where Zuko sat at the head of the table. Unlike Aang and her brother, Zuko ate slowly. He actually took the time to chew his food before he swallowed. And he always took small bites, not like the other two who stuffed their mouths so full they looked like weasel-chipmunks. She did not know why, but Zuko's eating habits pleased her.

Sensing someone looking at him, Zuko looked up to see Katara staring at him. She smiled before quickly looking away. He frowned in confusion as he watched her push her food around in her plate.

"So, Miss Katara," Iroh spoke up as he saw her blush. "How are your students coming along?"

Katara smiled proudly as she turned to face the retired general.

"They're progressing very well and they learn very fast. I wonder how they're doing with Master Pakku," she mused with a giggle.

Aang smiled at her and Iroh laughed as he exclaimed, "Those poor children! They will be worked so hard they will be waterbending in their sleep!"

They laughed loudly while Zuko smiled as he silently sipped from his wine cup.

"Well, now, I am sure you young people must be tired, so off to bed now!" Iroh proclaimed, clapping his hands. It was indeed very late. The sun had set a long time ago.

Zuko smiled as they all complained.

"But, Iroh we are not—" Aang began as he tried not to yawn.

"Now, now, you have all day tomorrow to enjoy yourselves. You all need a goodnight's rest so you will be up fresh and energized," Iroh told them.

They all stood up reluctantly. Sokka stuffed more food in his mouth as he moved away.

"Let me escort you to your rooms," Iroh continued with a grin.

The old firebender led the way to the western side of the palace. Turning to one of the guest wings, he stopped at the first door.

"Here is your usual room, my dear Miss Toph," he said, opening the door for the earthbender.

"Yeah, well, good night everybody," Toph yawned loudly and stepped inside, slamming the door behind her.

"This is your room, Miss Suki," Iroh announced as they approached the second room.

He opened it for her. Sokka peered inside and smiled mischievously as he turned to his girlfriend. Suki kissed him good night and went inside. As the rest walked on further down the hall, Ty Lee entered the next room happily.

"Your room, Miss Katara, is between Ty Lee's and Mai's. And if you keep going straight all the way to the end of this hall, and then make a right turn to the next corridor you will find my room and then, finally, Zuko's royal bedchamber," Iroh said with a twinkle in his eye.

Zuko felt his ears burn at his uncle's words. Why was his uncle telling Katara where his room was located?

"Oh, uh…thank you," Katara said with a small smile.

Aang frowned.

"Why will Katara need to know that?" he asked.

Iroh only shrugged innocently. "Oh, you know, just in case you need any help or something."

"Where will Aang and I sleep?" Sokka asked, looking down the hall, hoping to see another room.

"Ah, well you boys will sleep in the previous corridor." Iroh grinned when Sokka frowned. He led Aang and Sokka back the way they came from after they all bid each other good night.

Katara stood uneasily with Zuko and Mai outside her room. Mai seemed to be ignoring her, but she noticed that Zuko had an intense look as he stared at her.

"Well, then, good night," she told them before she turned to smile at Zuko. "And thanks again for receiving us," she said as she opened her door.

"You're welcome. Good night, Katara," Zuko answered as he stared after the young waterbender, smiling when she turned back to smile at him again before she closed the door.

He tensed when Mai grabbed his arm and pulled him towards her room.

"You must be cold, Zuko," she murmured as she began to pull on his robe.

Zuko's one eyebrow lifted as she began to kiss his neck. She had never done such a thing before. He frowned. And she knew he hated to show any physical contact in public. Besides, all he could think about was that Katara was next door.

"I'm not cold at all, thanks. Good night, Mai." He pulled away quickly, trying to hide his discomfort so as not to hurt her feelings.

"But, Zuko—" Mai began as a small frown appeared on her pale face.

"I'll see you tomorrow," Zuko told her as he briefly kissed her cheek.

Then he quickly turned to go to his bedchamber. All the way thinking, _She's here. Katara is finally here. They are all here._

* * *

As Katara entered her room, she surveyed her surroundings. The room was mostly red and creamy colored, with a marble floor, and she had a bathroom, which was a nice perk. It was impressive.

Noticing her bag next to the bed, she moved towards it. Unpacking her clothes which, she noted irritably, were too warm for this weather, she began to place them in the dresser. After she finished, she looked around the room again. She noticed that there was a wooden closet on one side of the wall and she walked toward it. She opened one door and peered inside, as expected, it was empty. She guessed it was for her clothes as well. A small laugh escaped her since she barely filled the top part of the dresser with the clothes she brought!

Changing into her too warm sleeping clothes, she reached her hand inside her bag to retrieve her hairbrush. As she pulled it out something fell to the floor with a soft 'clink'. Looking down with a frown, she gasped and quickly grabbed the hairpin. She examined it carefully to see if it was damaged.

"Stupid. How could you have forgotten about it?" she berated herself. "I would never have forgiven myself if I lost it."

What would Zuko say if he found out she lost the gift he gave her?

Sighing with relief after seeing it was not damaged, she headed for her bed. She pushed the blanket aside and settled herself on it. It was soft and comfortable, and slightly bigger than her bed back home.

Looking at the rose hairpin in her hand, she thought about the day's event. They were finally in the Fire Nation after four years, after finally defeating the ruthless Fire Lord Ozai. She never would have thought that she would feel this pleased for being here, especially after being afraid for so many years of the country that had harmed her family and so many people.

Glancing at the small window in the room, she smiled. Iroh was still wise, jolly, and silly. And as for Mai…still tall, thin, and serious.

And Zuko.

_Zuko…_

She felt herself blush. Toph was right. He had really changed in every sense of the word. Well, at least physically. She was sure that as the years went by he would still be a very handsome man. Perhaps even more.

_I wonder how he will look like years from now,_ she mused before she shook her head.

Katara set the hairpin gently down next to her new nightstand before she covered herself with the soft blanket as she prepared to sleep. But her thoughts would not let her go that easily. She felt her cheeks flush as she remembered Zuko's warm, muscular arms around her waist as they embraced earlier that day. It had felt nice and…right.

"No! Stop! I can't be having these thoughts! We're just friends," she told herself firmly. "Besides, I'm with Aang and…Zuko's with Mai... Just like it's supposed to be..."

* * *

Warm light fell on Katara's face and she frowned as sleep began to leave her. She let out a small yawn as she slowly opened her eyes and startled herself fully awake. With a frown, she looked around the unfamiliar room that greeted her. She took in the red and creamy colors and the decorations on the walls. Then noticing her half-unpacked things next to the dresser, everything that happened the previous day came back to her. They were back in the Fire Nation Palace after many years. They had come to visit Zuko.

"Zuko," she said with a smile as she pulled the warm covers away and quickly got out of bed.

She glanced toward the light that poured into the room from the window and gasped once she noticed the brightness of the day. She had overslept!

"Great. Now everybody will think I can't handle a long journey," she muttered as she turned away from the window.

Katara ran to her dresser, rummaged through it for a minute, and pulled out her clothes before she raced to the bathroom. It took her a moment to figure how to work the unfamiliar bathtub, but once she got it she quickly took a bath.

A few minutes later, the waterbender left her room and walked toward the guest room Suki had been given. With a smile, she raised her hand and knocked, but her smile turned into a frown when she received no answer. With a small shrug, she walked further down the corridor to Toph's room. Considering the rough earthbender, Katara was sure Toph would still be in bed. She knocked and the same result followed. She frowned. Where was everybody?

"If they had gone off without me, there will be hell to pay," the waterbender grumbled as she made her way down the hall. She glanced back over her shoulder.

_I could always check Zuko's room…_

No. He probably was already awake since dawn, being a firebender and all.

As she kept on walking down the golden corridor for a while, something dawned upon her that made her pause. She had no clue where to go or where she was since it had been almost four years since she had been in the palace.

"Come on, Katara, where is your head?" she scolded herself.

Katara wandered for some time hoping to find the others or at least a servant that could direct her to where her friends were, but she did not encounter one single person. It almost felt like she was the only one there.

_I forgot how big the palace really is,_ she thought, _And impressive, too._

She admired the beautiful vases on golden pedestals and the magnificent decorations on the walls. Such grandeur overwhelmed her since her home was much simpler, albeit still beautiful and elegant. Stopping to admire a stunning golden vase with crimson and black swirls that resembled dragons, Katara gazed at it in wonder for a moment before she noticed a rather chubby, old man huffing his way towards her. She smiled at him, about to ask him where the others where when the man scowled menacingly and started to yell at her.

"Who are you? What are you doing here? If you came to steal something, you are doing a terrible job!" he barked, his large belly shaking as he waved his hands in the air.

Katara stared at the man in disbelief.

"What? I'm not a thief!" she defended herself as she placed her hands on her hips. _Who does this jerk think he is?_

"Guards! Guards! Throw this wench into the prison tower!" he yelled as he looked frantically around them.

_Wench!_ Katara fumed before she froze. _Wait. What? The prison tower?_

She backed away a step from the man and whirled around. _I have to find Zuko or maybe Iroh!_

But the old man grabbed her arm before she could advance much and stopped her. Katara glared at him as she tried to pull away.

"Let me go!" she hissed as her other hand reached for her waterskin.

The old man sneered as he said, "You will not escape, you little—"

"Wei, you fool! Let the girl go!"

Katara turned at the new voice and saw an old man with long, white hair approaching them quickly, a deep frown on his wrinkled face.

"This woman was trying—" the fat, old man began as he dug his fingers into her arm, making her wince.

"She was trying nothing," the other man interrupted. "Do you even know who this woman is? She is a Master Waterbender, daughter of Chief Hakoda from the Southern Water Tribe," he continued, then with a small grin he added, "Not to mention one of Fire Lord Zuko's closest friends, whom I'm sure will be most displeased when he finds out you have disrespected his guest."

Katara wrenched her arm away from the man that still had a hold on her arm before she moved closer to the other one—who apparently was on her side—and smirked.

The large, old man eyed her for a moment before he snorted dismissively as he turned around and left without another word.

_Well, so much for an apology,_ Katara thought angrily as she rubbed her arm.

"I apologize for that," the white-haired man began, "Wei has always been a…"

"Jerk," she filled in before she turned to smile at him. "Thank you for helping me." She bowed. "I'm most grateful."

The old man smiled and bowed as well as he said, "You're welcome, Lady Katara. I am Chao, one of Fire Lord Zuko's advisors and friend of General Iroh. May I ask what are you doing here in this part of the palace?"

Katara reddened in embarrassment.

"Well, you see I…I kind of…got lost," she admitted sheepishly.

Chao chuckled deeply, reminding her of Iroh.

"I figured as much," he admitted. "The palace is very immense. Come, I will take you to the royal family dining room where everyone is waiting for you to join them for breakfast."

Katara smiled at the kind, old man. "Thank you."

* * *

Zuko looked anxiously at the entrance door to the dining room.

_Is Katara all right? I should have sent someone for her,_ he thought.

He tapped his fingers on the smooth table. Breakfast was supposed to have started an hour ago and there was still no sign of the waterbender.

Sitting on the young Fire Lord's right side, Iroh glanced at Zuko's face and then at his hands. He smiled as he noticed his nephew's restlessness as he also waited for the young lady to make an appearance.

From the end of the long table, Toph reclined in her chair lazily while a grin appeared on her face. She could feel the firebender's anxiety from her spot! She had felt the way Zuko and Katara's hearts had raced wildly as they embraced each other at the docks the previous day. As much as she cared for Aang and did not want to see him hurt, Toph knew, since a long time ago, that Katara and Zuko had started to develop feelings for one another, even if they did not know it yet or did not want to admit to it.

_Well, I'll guide them through the right path. They just need a little boost._ She grinned even more broadly.

"Where's Katara? She's never this late," Aang said with a frown as he stood up. "I'm going to look for her."

"Relax, Twinkletoes. It's Katara you're talking about. She's fine…See, I told you," Toph said as the door opened to reveal the one in question talking to an old man.

"Katara, where were you? We're starving," Sokka teased, but deep down he sighed with relief.

"I'm sorry, you guys, I was just a bit…sidetracked," Katara told them with a small shrug as she walked to the table and sat down.

"Sidetracked? What happened? Are you okay?" Aang began to bombard her with questions as he grabbed her hand in worry.

_La! I can take care of myself!_ Katara thought with an annoyed huff while she gave the young monk a light pat on his hand to calm him down.

Standing at the entrance, Chao spoke up as he looked at Zuko.

"She was a bit detained by Advisor Wei, my lord."

"Wei?" Zuko said with narrowed eyes. If Wei was involved then that meant nothing good. Then looking at Katara he asked, "Are you alright? Did he bother you?"

Mai raised her thin eyebrows as she heard the concern in Zuko's voice before she glared across the table at Katara. Iroh and Toph just smiled behind their hands.

"No, it's fine. I'm all right. Chao here, helped me," Katara answered, annoyed and at the same time glad for their concern. "Let's eat. Hmm, this looks delicious," she said with a large smile, hoping to change the subject.

Zuko looked away from the waterbender to raise an eyebrow at Chao and give him a look that said _'You will tell me everything later'._ Chao bowed and retreated.

"Well, Sugar Queen, for a minute there I thought you just overslept." Toph grinned as she popped a piece of fruit into her mouth.

Katara glowered at her.

* * *

After breakfast, the young men made their way toward the komodo rhinoceros' stables.

"What's that guy doing?" Sokka asked as he pointed at a man riding what looked to be a crazed komodo rhino.

Zuko turned to see where the warrior was pointing to.

"Oh, that's called komodo bull riding," he explained coolly. "It's basically riding an unbroken komodo rhino and trying to hold on without being thrown or trampled on."

"Why would you do that?" Aang asked him excitedly as another man tried after the first one flew off the animal's back.

"Well, for one it's a way to train the animals in order for them to get used to being ridden. The other reason is that it's more of a game. Men do it to test their skills and their bravery," Zuko informed them as they watched the second man get thrown off.

"That's awesome!" Sokka exclaimed as he began to make his way toward the ring with Aang trailing after him with excited steps. Zuko and his two personal guards followed at a more sedate pace.

Seeing the Fire Lord approaching, the stable men stopped what they were doing and bowed before him. Zuko nodded at them in acknowledgement and asked how the new komodo rhinos were progressing.

"We have broken all of them in, my lord. This one is the last one," an older man answered as he jerked his thumb toward the rhino pacing agitatedly in the ring.

Zuko nodded at him as he looked over at the angry beast. He remembered the old man as being the one in charge of the komodo rhinos in his ship when he had been the banished Fire Prince.

They watched as man after man tried to ride it, but the animal would not even give them the chance to settle down on its back. One man was unfortunate enough to be slashed with one of its sharp horns before he was rushed to the infirmary.

"He's very stubborn," the stableman said, then with a smile, he addressed Zuko, "My Lord, I've seen you komodo bull ride before and you were great at it. Maybe you could do it?"

"You have komodo bull ridden before?" Aang asked excitedly as he looked up at the frowning Fire Lord.

"Well…I did when I turned sixteen. You could say it was like…an initiation rite," Zuko answered with a passive look on his face.

"Cool. It's just like ice-dodging," Sokka piped in before he turned to grin at Zuko who narrowed his eyes warily at him. "Well, then, let's see your super skills."

"I don't know. It's been so long since I've ridden an unbroken komodo rhino," Zuko told them with a small frown.

"Ah, come on, Zuko! Show us how it's done," Aang encouraged him, almost jumping with enthusiasm.

Zuko frowned at the young monk, but sighed mentally when Aang looked at him with large, hopeful eyes. He could still see the twelve-year-old boy when Aang did that.

"Fine," Zuko relented quietly as he stepped inside the ring. It had been a long time since he had had a bit of fun, anyway.

"My lord, are you sure?" one of his personal guards asked him.

Zuko gave them another reassuring nod as he waved their concern away.

"Don't worry. I'll be fine. Get the komodo rhino out here," he ordered.

* * *

Katara and Suki tried to stifle their yawns as they, along with Toph, Mai, and Ty Lee, drank tea in one of the sitting rooms. They have been in the same room for about an hour, listening to Ty Lee gossip with Mai who only answered in one-word sentences.

When Mai and Ty Lee were not looking, Toph turned to the other two women.

"Miss Gloom sure isn't a good hostess, huh?" she mumbled under her breath

Suki and Katara giggled behind their cups of tea.

"Hey, not that this isn't great," the blind earthbender spoke up sarcastically, "but can we go outside?"

"Yeah, Mai! We're near the komodo rhino stables, let's show them!" Ty Lee told her tall friend as she jumped excitedly. Even though Mai was her friend, she could not stand being so serious.

Mai glared at them coldly before she conceded with a raised chin. They left the sitting room and made their way outside towards the stables and Toph let out a sigh when her feet touched the soil. They looked up when Iroh and Chao approached them and greeted them all cheerfully.

"I hope your day has been…interesting so far," Iroh said with a grin.

"You have no idea just how fun it was." Toph grinned back.

"What are they doing over there?" Suki asked as she pointed her finger ahead of them

The group turned to see a small group of men bringing a wild komodo rhino toward a ring. Iroh smiled proudly and explained what they were doing, though Katara thought it was a little silly. Why would they risk their lives just to prove who was the bravest?

"Hey, isn't that Zuko getting ready to ride it?" Ty Lee exclaimed as she pointed at the ring.

They all immediately looked closer.

"What's going on?" Toph asked with a huff since she couldn't see. Iroh leaned down slightly and filled her in on what was happening.

_Well, if_ Zuko's _doing it, then it is not that silly, _Katara thought as she saw him climb onto the back of the agitated animal.

Lowering himself onto the rhino's back as a few men held it in place, Zuko grabbed the reins tightly, adrenaline running through his veins. He remembered the first time he did this on the third year of his banishment, when he had turned sixteen, ready to prove to all his men his worth and bravery. He glanced sideways and noticed his uncle, Chao, and the women watching from a distance. He had a strange urge to impress Katara as he noticed her blue eyes fixated on him.

As the men released the animal, Zuko braced himself. The rhino launched forward, roaring and grunting as it tried to shake off the strange weight on its back. It thrashed wildly around the ring, bucking, jumping, and occasionally stopping abruptly. However, as much as the komodo rhino fought and raged, it could not throw this man off.

Zuko held himself upright magnificently. His face was devoid of any expression or emotion, but excitement showed in his golden eyes. He moved with the animal, one arm raised above his head to balance himself while with the other he held the reins firmly.

All those around the ring stared in complete admiration as they observed the amazing scene before them. Zuko looked so grand and majestic, betraying no sign of fear or fatigue as the rhino kept on bucking and ravaging. As she saw all this, Katara could not help but stare in awe, something that made Iroh very happy as he glanced at her.

After what seemed like hours, the rhino began to slow down. The stablemen were preparing to grab the tiring beast when all of the sudden the komodo rhino reared on its hind legs, ready to throw itself onto its back.

Katara watched in horror as the animal came down and gasped loudly.

_Oh, no! Zuko's going to be crushed_! she screamed in her head.

But quick as lightning, Zuko released the reins and jumped sideways, landing gracefully on his feet and hands off to the side as the sound of the saddle breaking under the animal's weight was heard. Standing up casually, he dusted himself off as the stable hands rapidly grabbed the exhausted animal and led it away. The guards, who had ran towards him at the sign of trouble, stopped and glanced at each other with relieved looks.

Katara let go of the breath she did not know she was holding with a loud sigh and relaxed.

Iroh beamed.

"Just like old times," he chuckled.

"Old times?" Toph asked after she was told of what had occurred. All the girls looked at him curiously. Iroh smiled as he readied himself for another story.

"Wow, Zuko! That was amazing!" Aang cried out as Zuko approached his two friends who had been leaning over the edge of the ring.

"Yeah, not bad," Sokka said with a shrug as he stroked his chin. Zuko smirked at him.

"I wanna try it!" Aang piped in excitedly as he jumped over the fence and began to leave them behind.

Zuko furrowed his eyebrows in concern.

"Aang, I don't think that's a good idea. It's too dangerous. You could get hurt if you don't know how to ride a wild rhino. Maybe you could ride a tamed one," Zuko told him, hoping to convince him.

"I'm not a baby! I can do it! I'm the Avatar, aren't I?" Aang replied, lifting his chin up. "I've ridden dangerous animals before. Don't worry. Trust me. Besides, you did it when you turned sixteen. I turned seventeen a few months ago!"

Zuko knew Aang was not a small preteen any longer and could handle it, but he was still worried. He had been around komodo rhinos all his life. Aang had not. After a few more arguments, Zuko relented reluctantly.

"Alright, but if anything goes wrong, we will stop," Zuko said, hoping nothing went wrong.

He looked at Sokka who looked back at him with a slightly less worried face since he knew Aang always liked to ride on any weird or fascinating animals he came across.

Iroh finished recounting Zuko's story to the girls and was about to start in another one when Mai interrupted with her usual dull tone.

"Isn't that the Avatar in the ring?"

"What is he doing?" Katara asked as she started to walk towards the other group when they saw Aang settle himself on the rhino.

"Don't worry, Miss Katara—" Iroh began to reassure her when he was cut off short as they saw Aang's body being thrown off roughly to the ground.

"Aang!" Katara yelled in alarm as she started to run while she struggled to get her waterskin open as the rhino began to descend its feet upon Aang.

Just when it seemed that Aang was about to be crushed, Zuko stepped in between. Creating a fire whip, he smacked it on the animal's chest, without actually burning it. The komodo rhino bellowed in anger, but it began to move back as Zuko cracked his whip again and again.

Katara slowed down unconsciously as she saw how well Zuko handled the whip. The guards quickly surrounded Zuko while the stable men grabbed the defeated beast and led it away again.

"Aang, are you all right?" Zuko asked worriedly as he helped the young boy stand up.

"Yeah, I'm fine. Thanks for—"

"Aang!" Katara called out as she ran towards them. "Are you hurt? Are you okay?"

"I'm fine!" Aang nearly yelled, feeling humiliated.

Then Katara angrily whirled on Zuko.

"What were you thinking letting him ride that thing? You knew he didn't know how! He could've gotten hurt!"

Zuko only stared as she yelled at him. She was blaming _him_ for what just happened?

"Believe me, if I had known this would have happened, I wouldn't had let him—"

"You did know!" Katara interrupted harshly. "And you still let him do it! You didn't try to stop him!"

"Katara, wait—" Aang tried to cut in, but he was disregarded. The rest of the people near the ring only stood there awkwardly as the two benders stared each other down.

"He could've been hurt, or worse, killed!" Katara kept on arguing.

Zuko was beginning to lose his temper. Nobody accused him of doing something he did not do. Nobody. But he just could not bring himself to yell at her. He knew she was just upset because she cared for Aang's safety.

"Katara. Aang is not a child anymore. Stop mothering him and let him grow up," Zuko ground out.

With that, he turned back to the palace, his guards trailing after him. He had work anyway.

Iroh shook his head at Katara, and looking at the rest of the group, he followed his nephew with Chao walking beside him.

Katara just stood there, dumbstruck. _Mothering? I do not baby Aang!_

"You really overdid it, Sugar Queen," Toph said as she 'stared' after Zuko. "Poor guy."

_Great. One step forward and now two steps back,_ the small earthbender grumbled mentally.

"Aang could have gotten hurt," Katara argued again.

"Katara, I was trying to explain. Zuko tried to stop me. It was my idea. I wanted to ride the komodo rhino, he tried to warn me, but I didn't listen to him. It wasn't his fault," Aang admitted, looking down at his feet.

"Yep, it's true. Zuko tried to stop Aang," Sokka added, giving his sister a disapproving look.

"Not to mention he saved Twinkletoes here," Toph added also.

As she listened to them Katara began to feel horrible, but she still had her pride.

Crossing her arms she said, "Yeah, well, he should've persuaded Aang better."

They all sighed at her stubbornness.

* * *

Zuko decided to eat his dinner in his antechamber in order to finish some of his paperwork. He had asked Toph for help in finding an earthbending instructor for the colonies and she had promised to send letters to those she knew. He had received news that the walls were being built, guard duty was being effective, and that the firebending instructors were doing well. All he needed was a teacher for the earthbending residents.

A knock was heard at the door before it opened once Zuko called out for whoever it was to enter.

"Nephew, I was waiting for you to eat dinner with us. Why didn't you show up?" Iroh asked as he entered the room, immediately pouring himself a cup of tea he had a servant bring.

Still keeping to his papers, Zuko answered, "I thought that I should finish these documents for the next meeting."

"Or was it because of what happened at the stables with Miss Katara this morning?" Iroh asked, raising his white, bushy eyebrow.

"I'm not hiding if that is what you're implying. No, that has nothing to do with me excusing myself from dinner," the young lord told him as he looked up.

"Zuko, would you mind me asking why you act differently with Katara?"

"What do you mean?" Zuko asked, furrowing his eyebrows as he lowered the papers in his hands.

"Well, you know, Nephew, you really surprised me when you didn't blow up your anger at her. I remember you would lose your temper quite often when I would want to go shopping," Iroh chuckled, but Zuko remained silent with a blank expression on his face.

"Not to mention you seem nervous around her, especially when she smiles. You never act like that with other girls, not even with Mai. Is something going on?" he asked anxiously.

"I do _not_ act nervous! And I don't know what you are trying to get at. The reason I may…act differently is because Katara is different from other women," Zuko replied as he looked outside the window, as the sun began to set.

"She has gained my admiration and respect because she is an excellent waterbender and always puts up a good fight. She is kind and caring and always tries to help those around her. And she saved my life when Azula struck me with her lightning. She is just a very special friend," Zuko explained before he let out a small sigh. "Not to mention both of us have one thing in common."

"And what is that? If I may ask," Iroh said curiously.

"We both had our mothers taken away from us at a very young age," Zuko responded in a low voice.

He remembered their conversation in the Catacombs of Ba Sing Se. The way Katara had cried when she told him she lost her mother because of the Fire Nation. Hearing her sobbing voice touched his heart, and before he knew what he was doing, he confessed to her that he had lost his mother as well. He had never told anyone that he missed his mother before her.

Iroh watched as his nephew got lost in his thoughts and nodded.

"I see…Well then, I'll leave you to your work," he said as he stood up and left the room.

Zuko looked back down at his papers, but after a while, he set them aside as he ran a hand down his face. Did he really act differently around Katara? And if so…why?

A few minutes later, a knock sounded at his door and he called for the person to enter. Looking up, Zuko saw Chao open the door and he motioned for the advisor to take a seat on one of the cushions around the low table.

"You called for me, my lord?" bowing, Chao asked as he sat down.

"Yes. I want to thank you for helping Lady Katara, but I know something else happened with Wei that Lady Katara did not want to mention," Zuko began, putting down his paperwork. "Tell me what that fool did to scare her."

Even though she acted as if nothing happened, he had noticed she was a bit affected by it.

Chao nodded. He hoped Wei got what he deserved.

* * *

"That stupid idiot!" Zuko fumed as he entered his bedchamber after talking to Chao and closed the doors loudly behind him.

"How dare Wei say such things to Katara? Not to mention dared to handle her so roughly. Well, it won't happen again," Zuko growled under his breath.

The young man removed his robes and sat down on the cushion in front of his meditating candles. He lit the candles with a flick of his wrist, closed his eyes and inhaled deeply. He really wished he could dismiss Wei, but he needed to keep that imbecile on his side, at least for a while. He wished the rest of his people did not act like Wei with his other friends, but he was not that ignorant. People were still wary of each other even after the war.

After he finished meditating—after a few tries of trying to get his temper under control—Zuko walked a bit more calmly into his bathroom and heated the marble tub after it was filled with water. He divested himself quickly before he climbed into the tub, the warm water making him heave a tired sigh.

As he washed himself, he frowned.

"Why am I even bothering? She won't even appreciate it," he said with a scowl as he sat in the hot tub for a while.

Nevertheless, he could not blame Katara for what happened that morning. She was just worried for what could have happened to Aang. He used to easily lose his temper for everything—even his uncle pointed that out—so he had no right to be angry at her for her words. Zuko sighed.

_She really does care for Aang,_ he thought as he remembered her worried face.

He strangely felt saddened a bit at this thought.

_I wish Katara would care for me like that…Wait. What am I thinking?_ Shaking his head, he submerged himself into the water before he could hear the knock sounding from outside his room.

* * *

When Zuko did not show up for dinner, Katara felt even more horrible. As she sat at her dresser in her guest room, she recalled the way she treated Zuko earlier that day and she felt miserable. Was he mad at her? Well, she would not blame him if he was after the way she had accused him. She felt a bit guilty, but she had been so scared.

Then a thought formed in her head. She had yelled and accused him in front of everybody and he did not even yell back to defend himself. Zuko, the hot-tempered guy, not to mention the Fire Lord. Now that she thought about it, he had never lost his temper on her. Not even when she threatened him in the Western Air Temple. She felt even worse.

"Well, I'm going to set things right and apologize," she said determinedly as she stood up.

Katara quickly checked herself in the mirror to make sure she looked fine and paused with a blush when she realized what she was doing before she shook her head.

The waterbender left her room and followed the directions Iroh had given her the previous night. As she turned to the next corridor, she realized that it was longer and more decorated and opulent than the other ones, and she could not help but be impressed. As she walked further, she passed the only other door visible, and assumed it belonged to Iroh. As she finally approached the end of the golden corridor after what seemed like forever, she was even more surprised by what she saw.

The entrance to Zuko's bedchamber was two massive doors that almost reached to the high ceiling. The doors were wide, made of pure gold with intricate designs of Fire Nation symbols as well as dragons masterfully carved on them. Katara stood there, admiring the impressive doors for a while, before she remembered what she had come for.

She let out a long breath as she raised her hand to knock on one of the doors.

_Calm yourself. You have to do this. He's not going to bite,_ she told herself before an uninvited image of Zuko gently biting her earlobe crossed her mind, causing her eyebrows to rise high on her forehead. _Where in the world had that come from?_

With a mental shake, Katara quickly knocked on the door, feeling the surface with her hand as she waited. But no one answered. She knocked a few times a bit harder. Still no one answered. Was he avoiding her?

_Well, he's going to hear my apology, like it or not,_ the Water Tribe woman mentally huffed.

Katara opened the heavy door slowly, surprised that it was unlocked and that no guards were posted outside, before she peeked inside. She was even more surprised as she saw the elegant room with a low table, couches and cushions all around, but there was no bed. Was she in the right room?

Katara looked ahead and noticed another set of doors, exact replicas of the previous ones. She quietly crossed the empty room, walked toward the second entrance, and knocked gently, but as before, nobody answered. She frowned. Iroh told her Zuko was in here with his paperwork.

_What if something happened to him? What if he's hurt?_ she thought worriedly.

Katara quickly opened one of the doors a crack, peeked inside and gasped. This room was even bigger and more elegant than the other one, putting her guest room and the others to shame. She guessed the room she saw first was the antechamber and this room was Zuko's bedchamber.

Without thinking, she went inside and marveled at the decorations on the walls and the black marble floor under her feet. She noticed a big fireplace crackling on one wall and off to one side near another wall was a small cushion on the floor and some candles. Then she noticed the window.

_Wait. That window is huge!_ She moved closer and peered through the curtain. _It's a balcony!_ She had to resist the urge to open the doors.

_Maybe Zuko's sleeping,_ Katara thought after a while, a bit embarrassed for disturbing him.

The young woman turned slowly to look at the bed. She sighed with relief when she saw that no one was on it, but, as she looked closely, her eyes widened in shock.

_That is the biggest bed I have ever seen!_ she mentally exclaimed.

She slowly moved closer to it, almost afraid something would jumped at her from it, and noticed it had many pillows on its surface and was covered by silk sheets of different shades of red. She leaned closer, and reaching a hand out, she touched the top sheet. It was silky, smooth, and very inviting.

Grinning, she thought, _I wonder how it would feel to be under these silky sheet covers with Zuko. _

She slapped herself for her thoughts and quickly turned around to leave, but she froze when she heard another door open.

Katara gasped softly. It was Zuko. His short raven-black hair was wet and occasionally a drop of water would fall down his muscular shoulders. He was only wearing a red towel around his lean waist, which he was busy tying at the moment to notice her dumbly standing there with huge, blue eyes.

_Oh, my gods!_ Katara's mind screamed as her eyes traveled along Zuko's well-built, pale upper body. She knew she should look away, but it seemed she just couldn't.

She almost jumped out of her skin when Zuko finally looked up. Then it was his turn to widen his eyes as he stopped mid step.

"Katara? What are you doing here?" Zuko asked incredulously.

"I…I…w-was…" Katara stammered, her face turning even redder. At that moment, she wished she were an earthbender so the ground could swallow her up.

Zuko smirked as he realized her embarrassment.

"Yes?" he asked with an amused raised eyebrow.

"I just came to apologize for earlier…I'm sorry, but I did knock, but you didn't answer, I got worried and I was about to leave when you came in," she rambled on looking at the wall behind him.

"Slow down," Zuko instructed as he held up a hand and smirked. "I'm sorry, I didn't hear you knock. As you can see, I was busy."

Katara blushed even deeper as she fidgeted with her fingers.

"Chao told me what Wei did," Zuko said, his expression turning serious.

Katara looked away. "It was nothing, really."

"Nothing? He disrespected you! You, my guest and friend. I promise you that fool won't do it again," Zuko said in a severe tone.

Katara smiled.

"Thanks. Anyway, that is all I wanted to say. Aang and Sokka explained to me that you did try to stop Aang and I thank you for that. I am really sorry for blaming you for what happened."

Zuko only nodded.

"It's okay. I understand why you reacted like that."

"You do?" she asked as she glanced up at him.

"Yes. You were just worried for Aang's safety," he said, looking away.

"I was worried for you, too, when that animal almost fell on you," Katara quickly added. She wondered why she admitted that. Maybe it was the dejected tone in his voice. But that was ridiculous. Why would Zuko feel sad?

"Really?" Zuko looked back at her with a raised eyebrow.

"Yeah. You know, I was really impressed at how well you rode that crazed komodo rhino," Katara confessed with a smile.

Zuko felt his heart expand at her compliment.

"I am glad to know that you liked it," he said, smiling slightly.

Katara blushed and looked down. She frowned when she noticed the scar on the middle of his chest.

Zuko saw her frown and he wondered at it.

"What's wrong?" he asked.

"The scar…It…it didn't heal right," she said softly. "I'm sorry."

Zuko's hand came up to his chest as if he were trying to hide it.

_Does she feel bad that I have another horrible scar?_ he thought darkly.

"Don't worry about it. At least nobody can see this one all the time," he said dryly as he removed his hand from his chest and clenched it at his side.

Katara looked up as she heard the hard tone of his voice. She noticed his face had darkened, there was a hint of hurt in his golden eyes, and she realized what he was thinking.

"Zuko, it's not the actual scar I feel so guilty about. Scars are not what make people ugly, you know that. It's the fact that you got it because of me…that you could have…died…because of me. Because I didn't listen to you and stay away. I felt so horrible when I saw you hurting so badly," Katara softly said, her eyes filling with tears at the memory. "I was so scared."

Zuko finally understood what she meant and he felt his heart warm at her words.

_She was scared…for me?_

As he noticed her cerulean eyes fill with tears, he quickly walked over to her.

Placing a gentle hand on her shoulder he said, "Katara, it wasn't your fault. You tried to stop me, but I did not heed your words. You didn't know Azula was going to disregard the Agni Kai rules. And if I had known, I wouldn't have accepted the Agni Kai or I would have fought somewhere else. Besides, you saved me by healing the wound.

"Katara," Zuko softly continued, "I would gladly receive many more scars if it meant to keep you from getting hurt…to keep you safe."

Katara looked up to see Zuko's eyes. His beautiful, golden eyes, that seemed to be engulfing her.

_He would really do that?_ Her heart fluttered. She looked down towards his scarred flesh.

"Thank you, Zuko," Katara said as she reached to touch his new scar.

Both jumped slightly as they felt like an electric shock went through them both. They looked at each other wonderingly.

"No. Thank _you_, Katara," Zuko warmly said as he placed his hand over hers.

Katara suppressed a shiver. She looked up and held his steady gaze. She could faintly feel Zuko's heartbeat as her hand rested on his chest. Neither one of them moved for a while, it was as if time had stopped.

"What is going on here?" Mai's cold voice sounded throughout the room.

Katara and Zuko quickly moved away from each other and turned. Mai was standing stiffly at the door, the twitching of her lip the only visible sign of her annoyance. Iroh stood beside her with a grin on his face.

_I knew it! They can't fool me!_ Iroh beamed.

He had always suspected his nephew had feelings for the waterbender even way back when Zuko was chasing the Avatar, even if he never admitted to it. He had noticed the way Zuko would seem to perk up every time he would see "the little Water Tribe peasant girl" and how eager he would be to fight her. Iroh would always muse to himself, believing that Zuko liked fighting with the girl to get close to her. As much as Zuko tried to justify himself, Iroh knew better. The retired general had tried many times to get his nephew interested in a girl, like that Earth Kingdom girl, Song that healed his rash or Jin from Ba Sing Se he made Zuko go on a date with. However, none were able to capture his attention.

Iroh then turned to see Mai's irritated face as she glared at Katara. At first, he had thought that maybe Mai had succeeded, but as Iroh got to know her better and her relationship with his nephew, he was gladly mistaken.

He turned back to see Zuko's embarrassed face even though he tried to hide it. His suspicions were correct. He was, after all, the Dragon of the West. The lovely Water Tribe woman had captured his nephew's attention and possibly even his heart. He knew Katara was the perfect woman for Zuko, the perfect one to make him happy.

"Um…I…" Katara blushed as Iroh gave them a silly grin.

_I what? I was touching Zuko's muscular, naked chest?_

"Katara was just checking to see if my wound had healed completely," Zuko quickly covered, keeping his expression unreadable, but his right cheek was red with embarrassment.

"Yes. And it's fine. So I will be leaving now," Katara said with a nervous laugh as she quickly exited the room. She noticed Mai's hard glare as she passed her.

Iroh smiled as Katara left then he turned to his nephew.

"Well, that's good," he said, smiling broadly.

Zuko frowned at his uncle before he looked at Mai.

"Wait outside in the anteroom," he ordered firmly.

The noblewoman seemed reluctant, but she left. She had never entered Zuko's room before and _that_ woman had. And he did not seem bothered by it. Mai silently seethed as she sat in the sitting room.

Before his uncle could say anything, Zuko raised his hand and said, "Nothing happened."

He quickly returned to his bathroom to change and calm himself down. The last thing he wanted was for Iroh to get ideas, but what he did not know was that it was already too late.

* * *

**A/N: I know the plot is slow right now, but please be patient.**

**I don't want this story to be like the other ones where Zuko and Katara meet, then next scene they fight, then they make up and realize they're in love, then they have sex, then Katara ends up pregnant, blah blah blah...I want this story to be at least more realistic, where the characters actually have to go through many things to realize their true feelings...**

**I'll try to have the next chapter up soon! Thanks for reading!**

**~alwaysZutarian**


	4. Rare Laughter

**For those of you wondering what happened to the rest of the chapters, please read the info I posted on my livejournal account (link is on my profile).**

**This chapter went through some changes from the original. Enjoy!**

**Thanks to my Beta reader Jezebel. V. Sterling for her awesome job!**

Disclaimer: I do not own Avatar: the Last Airbender nor any of the characters.

* * *

Chapter Four

**_Rare Laughter_**

* * *

The next couple of days were awkward for Katara. She could not stop herself from blushing every time she saw Zuko, especially when he would look at her intensely. So she tried to avoid being alone with him. She berated herself since there was no reason why she should act like that if they had not done anything wrong and nothing happened.

Though she did wonder what that little shock she felt when she touched him meant…

_That didn't mean anything!_ she told herself, though she almost felt like she was hiding from him—which she was.

_That's because I'm embarrassed! I mean I was touching a handsome, young man! I was alone in Zuko's room and he was half-naked! What does that say? I hope Iroh and Mai don't think wrong of me._

Katara sighed loudly as she fanned her face with her hand. The weather was hot, especially since she was wearing her Water Tribe clothes.

"Well, at least I won't die of frostbite," she muttered dryly as she bent the sweat from her forehead with a flick of her wrist.

She should buy some Fire Nation for her and Sokka. Maybe she could ask Iroh which tailor shop would suit their needs best, after all, she was sure he knew every shop the city had to offer. She grinned.

Sitting under the shade of a tree in one of the palace gardens, Katara admired the view. There were many trees and flowers around, perfectly arranged in patterns. She had been told that this was a public garden for the noble ladies of the Fire Nation. She had seen many of them pass by as they gingerly walked on the stone paths, giggling and gossiping. Some of them had smiled or stared at her curiously, while others looked down at her with contempt. But Katara paid them no mind as long as they kept to themselves.

"Lady Katara?" a gentle, feminine voice called out.

Katara turned around to see a young servant woman, her head slightly inclined, addressing her. She was pretty and probably around her mid-twenties, with the usual pale skin and dark hair all Fire Nation women had.

"Yes? Is there something you need?" Katara asked kindly.

The young woman lifted her eyes slightly and shook her head slowly.

"Actually, that is what I was going to ask you. Do you need a cool drink? Would you like some treats?" the woman asked as she humbly looked down.

"What? Oh, no, I'm fine. You don't have to," Katara began as she blushed at the servant's enthusiasm.

"The Fire Lord has ordered that his guests are to be treated well. It is my duty to provide you with whatever you need, Lady Katara," the maidservant continued.

"Well, thank you, but I'm okay right now. Maybe later," Katara replied politely.

The young servant looked up in disbelief. This woman was actually being nice to a mere servant! Katara gave her a friendly smile, which the older woman gladly returned before she bowed again and retreated.

"Katara!" Suki called as she and Toph came up to her. "Do you want to spar a little with us?"

The waterbender looked up and smiled at her friends as she stood up and brushed her clothes.

"Actually, I was thinking of asking Uncle Iroh to recommend a tailor shop where I can buy some clothes," she said as she again wiped at her forehead.

"It is pretty hot," Suki commented as she shaded her eyes to look up at the sunny sky.

"Yeah, that's why I wanted to ask Uncle Iroh," Katara replied.

"Ask me what, my dear Miss Katara?" they heard Iroh ask.

The three young women turned to see the old man walk up to them with a serene smile.

"Just the man we wanted to see," Toph spoke up with a smirk.

"Oh?" Iroh uttered curiously with a quirked eyebrow.

"I need to buy some clothes, so I was wondering if you could recommend a place," the blue-eyed waterbender informed him.

"Ah, I see," Iroh said as he smiled at her, "Zuko did mention that you might need Fire Nation clothes for this weather, Miss Katara."

He grinned broadly when the waterbender's cheeks tinted slightly before she cleared her throat.

"I am free at the moment, so, if you'd like, I can escort you young ladies to one of my favorite shops," he enthused as he smiled at them all.

"Well, what're we waiting for? Let's go already," Toph piped in, stomping her feet and causing the ground to tremble.

Chuckling, Iroh motioned them to follow him back into the palace. He assured them he would wait for them in the courtyard with a carriage while they went to their rooms to collect their money. After leaving her room, Katara came across Sokka and explained where they were going. With a relieved exclamation, he quickly gave her money so she could also buy him Fire Nation clothes. Then he sternly told her to be careful. She rolled her eyes but promised she would.

Katara smiled when she spotted Iroh waiting for the carriage as she walked down the long flight of stairs that led to the palace front courtyard. She wondered how much longer Suki and Toph would take.

"Ah, there you are," Iroh said when he saw her approach, "I hope you like the shop we will be visiting. They have many varieties of textiles and colors!"

"I'm sure I will," the brunette assured him with a smile.

"I hope you also buy red clothes too, my dear," Iroh comment with a grin.

"Oh, uh, I was just planning of buying a few simple, blue outfits," Katara muttered.

"Nonsense! You need a variety. You cannot always wear blue," Iroh continued as he gave her a definitive nod before he was distracted by the arrival of the carriage.

Katara shook her head at his enthusiasm and smiled. Then with a small blush as she remembered the previous day, she hesitantly asked, "Uncle Iroh?"

"Yes, my dear?" Iroh answered as he turned to her.

"Um…about the other day…in Zuko's room…I promise you that nothing inappropriate happened…I hope you don't have a bad impression about me," she told him quietly.

Iroh kindly smiled at her.

"Do not worry about it, Miss Katara. I know you are a decent young lady. Besides, Zuko already assured me of it, making sure your virtue was not questioned. I was just surprised to find someone else in his room, that's all."

"Why?" Katara asked curiously as she looked up at him.

"Well, you see…Zuko does not allow anyone to enter his bedchamber, except for his most trusted servants to clean his room and dress him in his formal clothes, and of course, me. Not even Mai had entered his room before that day," Iroh replied.

"I'm sorry," she quickly said. "I didn't know, I just wanted to apolo—"

"Don't worry. Zuko did not even seem bothered. So I guess it is fine," Iroh quickly interrupted her with a reassuring smile before exclaiming, "Ah, here come Miss Toph and Miss Suki!"

Katara turned to see her friends approach them quickly. Soon they were sitting in the carriage and heading out the palace gates with a few guards mounted on komodo rhinos following them. Iroh told the girls they were the Royal Palace Guards and they were for protection…and for carrying their packages. Settling comfortably in the gently swaying carriage, they chatted happily as they went.

* * *

Zuko and Aang practiced their firebending for a while after they had finished breakfast. Aang was very impressed at how much a better firebender Zuko had become since the war, but he did not admit that he had not practice his firebending much since he still was a little wary of it.

"Where are the girls?" Aang asked as he and Zuko took a break. A few servants rushed forward and handed them towels and drinks.

"I think Uncle took them shopping," Zuko answered as he wrapped the small towel around his neck. A servant had given him a message from his old uncle as Zuko was making his way to the arena.

"Shopping? For what?" Aang asked as he drank from his glass.

"Fire Nation clothes," Sokka spoke up from where he had been sitting watching them spar.

"Clothes? Why?" the young monk asked, scratching Momo's head as the flying lemur rested on his shoulder.

"Well, they need Fire Nation clothing in order to handle this heat," Zuko said as he wiped his forehead.

"They were hot? I did not hear them say so," the seventeen-year-old said with a frown.

Zuko looked at the young monk in disbelief. _He's even blinder than a badger-mole._

"Yeah, I forgot how damn hot the Fire Nation is," Sokka grumbled as he wiped his sweaty forehead. He had stripped down to his pants and an undershirt.

Zuko smirked, but he recovered his blank expression when he noticed Wei making his way toward them.

"Well, well. Is the Young One taking a break from all the hard work?" Wei taunted from a few feet before them.

Zuko glared hard at the old advisor and Aang rolled his eyes. Sokka regarded the old man carefully.

"I thought you were impatient to 'bring honor and glory' to the Fire Nation. And here you are, having a play day," Wei sneered.

Sokka narrowed his eyes. He did not like this man. He had a bad feeling just like he had with Jet and Long Feng.

"We were just practicing and doing some exercises," Sokka spoke up as he rotated one of his shoulders dramatically. "Something you clearly don't know about," he said nonchalantly.

Zuko held back a smirk and Aang stifled his laughter as the older man's face turned red with anger.

"Well, that is not helping the Fire Nation, now is it, you Water Tribe peasant?" the old man snapped.

Momo screeched and perched himself on Zuko's shoulder, higher away from the scary old man. Zuko narrowed his eyes.

"You shall show some respect to my guests, Wei," the young Fire Lord growled out, remembering his conversation with Chao. "And if I hear any more reports about your insolence, I will have to dismiss you from several meetings."

Wei only huffed and hobbled away. Zuko resisted the urge to send a fireball at him.

"Don't like him," Sokka confessed, narrowing his eyes.

"Who does?" Aang said.

The three young men smirked before they resumed their training.

* * *

A few hours later, Iroh and the three women returned to the palace. Katara smiled as she remembered their outing. Her eyes had widened when they entered the tailor's shop. There were rows and rows of clothes and fabrics of different colors and designs. She had thought she would have only seen red and gold. As if reading her mind Iroh told them that Fire Nation women sometimes did wear different colored clothing for special events.

Iroh had moved around the shop like a child in a candy store, picking out different outfits for them. Toph chose, with the help of Katara, green robes of different shades, while Suki picked green ones as well as pink and brown. Katara had at first chosen two plain blue outfits, but Iroh shoved more clothes at her with different shades of blue and others of red with intricate designs.

Katara had no choice but to comply with the eager, old man. After they finished, they left the tailor shop happily, except for the poor guards who were carrying their heavy packages behind them.

Coming out of her thoughts, Katara shook her head and grinned. They piled out of the carriage and headed back into the palace while the servants and guards rushed to unload their purchases by Iroh's order.

Iroh and the women passed the training arena as Aang and Zuko finished their firebending exercises. They stood aside for a few minutes to observe. Katara watched as Zuko wiped the sweat from his neck with a towel. She had never thought a sweaty person as being attractive, but as she saw Zuko's muscular body glistened under the sun she could not help but think so. She blushed at her thoughts.

"Alright, you had your fun bending and all. Now it's my turn," Sokka grinned as he unsheathed his black sword. "What do you say, Zuko? Are you up for a little sword spar? Or have you forgotten how to use real weapons?" He smirked.

Zuko smirked back and called for one of his servants to bring him his dual broadswords. He had never stopped practicing with his swords and he always carried them with him when he was outside the palace walls. He would especially carry them when he would occasionally sneak out at night to inspect his city in order to see what some people were truly like and what they did behind his back. He had resurrected the Blue Spirit. It was a part of him and he liked the freedom it sometimes brought.

After a few minutes, the servant returned and handed the swords to his lord.

Unsheathing his dual broadswords, Zuko faced Sokka and smirked.

"I'm sure I still remember some moves," he drawled.

Sokka laughed and then rushed at Zuko, drawing his sword forward. Zuko blocked with one sword and attacked with the other, but Sokka quickly dodged it.

"Not bad, Fire Lord, let's see if you can block this!"

Sokka began to slash and slice repeatedly at the firebender. Zuko parried each slash skillfully as he was driven backwards. Sokka then jumped forward and brought his sword downward, but Zuko blocked the attack by crossing both his swords in front of his face.

"Not bad yourself, Master Sokka," Zuko remarked coolly as he smirked behind his swords.

Then he pushed forward and attacked Sokka, swirling, dodging, and slashing himself. Both of their weapons clashed smoothly and gleamed brightly in the sunlight.

"Wow, they're so great!" Suki exclaimed as one of her hand wandered to the golden fans at her waist belt.

Katara watched with pride as her brother attacked and defended himself with his dark sword. Again, she was impressed by how great a warrior Zuko was, both in firebending and in sword fighting.

"Well, I'm sure we will see more of this later on, so let's put your things in your rooms," Iroh brought them out of their trance. They reluctantly moved away and went inside the palace.

Entering her room, Katara watched as the guards settled the packages on the floor just as a few servants entered to help.

"Do you want us to unpack and hang your clothes right now?" the same young maidservant from before asked.

"No, it's fine. I can do it myself. I don't want to trouble you. Besides, you probably have more important things to do. If I do need your assistance, I'll ask you for your help. What is your name, by the way?" Katara asked.

The young woman bowed, grateful that the waterbender actually wanted to know her name.

"My name is Jiao, Lady Katara," she replied, "And I would be glad to assist you in whatever you need."

"Well, Jiao, thank you," Katara said, and then turning to the others she said, "Thank you all for everything." She gave them all a friendly smile.

The guards and the servants smiled back and bowed as they headed out the door. As they left Katara caught part of a comment one of the servants made, "I like her. She's nicer than Lady Mai…"

For the next couple of hours, Katara placed her clothes in her dresser, but since she had so many clothes thanks to Iroh's enthusiasm she had to use the closet.

_Iroh sure overdid it,_ she thought with a giggle. She could not wait to try them on.

She was almost finished putting everything away when she heard a knock on her opened door.

"Come in," she called without looking up.

"Wow. I bet this was Uncle's idea," Zuko lightly joked as he entered her room and saw all of her clothes. He had been passing by on his way to his chambers and noticed her busy at work.

Katara blushed as she put away the shirt she had been folding.

"I tried to ignore him, but he kept insisting," she told him with a giggle before she more softly added, "Thank you for asking your servants to help us, but I don't want to cause any trouble."

"It is no trouble at all. It's my servants' job to accommodate my guests. Did Jiao displease you?" he asked, slightly worried.

"What? No, no. She's very nice and always asks if I need any help. It's just that I can do things myself. I don't need others to do things for me," she told him as she crossed her arms over her chest.

Zuko smirked. That was another thing he liked about the waterbender. She was independent and not at all spoiled.

"Well, I asked Jiao to be your assistant because she is one of my most trusted servants. And I'm sure she will do her best."

"Thanks," Katara said with a smile.

"You're welcome. And I'm glad you purchased Fire Nation outfits. It was very noticeable that you were terribly uncomfortable in your clothes," Zuko told her. He had seen how uncomfortable she had looked, especially during noon.

"Was it that obvious?" she asked and laughed.

Zuko nodded and felt slightly smug for making her laugh. Then she stopped and he noticed her blush.

"Listen. About the other night…I'm sorry…for embarrassing you," Katara said, playing nervously with her braid. "And I am also sorry for entering your room without permission. I didn't mean to invade your privacy or anything."

Zuko's face flushed slightly and he cleared his throat. He could not forget the feeling of her fingers resting gently on his chest, the way it had cause a shot of heat to go throughout his body. To some lower regions of his body…

Composing himself, he responded, "You don't have to apologize for entering my room, you didn't know. It's not like it's a law or anything. It's just that I find my room to be the only place where I can have some time to myself and have some peace and tranquility. And besides, nothing happened, right?"

"Yeah," she answered.

Zuko smiled slightly and Katara laughed weakly.

"I hope your clothes fit in your closet, Miss Katara," they heard Iroh say as he entered her room with a silly smile on his face.

"Maybe you should have bought her a bigger wardrobe, Uncle," Zuko said dryly.

"Hmm? That's not a bad idea," Iroh mused, stroking his chin.

Katara was about to object when everybody else entered her room and she sighed. Her sigh deepened when Mai and Ty Lee entered a few seconds later when they noticed everybody gathered in the room. So much for taking a rest.

"Well, it sure is hot," Iroh commented casually before he snapped his fingers. "I know! Why don't you young people go to the beach at Ember Island to cool off?"

"Ember Island? That place is so beautiful," Suki said excitedly as she grabbed onto Sokka's arm, who then smiled down at her.

"Yeah, remember when I did that sand sculpture of you? It was beautiful," Sokka said, oblivious as the others snickered. "Before _somebody_ destroyed it," he said, pointedly raising his eyebrow at Zuko.

Zuko frowned at him before he shrugged. "I was just trying to get Aang to practice and—"

"You all have been to Ember Island?" Mai interrupted, looking at them coldly.

The others went silent at the way she was looking at them as if they had committed a crime. Toph snorted at the woman's cold tone and crossed her arms.

"Yeah, I took them to the royal beach house when we were hiding during the war," Zuko responded concisely.

He was slightly annoyed with her tone. Mai only looked away and raised her chin.

"Well, we can't go anyway," Katara replied slowly, not sure what to make of the hard frown on Zuko's face. "We don't have bathing suits."

She was no longer fourteen so she could not wear her underclothes to swim anymore. And she was sure Suki and Toph felt the same.

The young group turned at the sound of Iroh's chuckles.

"You do not have to fret about that," said he as he handed the guests a package each from the bag he had settled near his feet when he had entered the room.

_He must have gotten them at the tailor shop,_ Katara thought as she peeked inside the package.

After Iroh reassured them that they did not need to repay him, their excitement resurfaced once again.

"We still won't be able to go because Zuko is too busy," Mai interrupted dully as she looked uninterestingly at her nails. She had tried to convince Zuko weeks ago and he had refused without any hesitation.

They seemed to deflate at the noblewoman's words.

"I'm sorry, I really would like to go, but I have—" Zuko began.

"Nonsense! You are all going!" Iroh cut in.

"But Uncle, I can't leave. I have to—"

"Do not worry, Nephew. It is not that much work. And I can handle it. You need a vacation!" Iroh reassured him, but Zuko seemed reluctant.

"Yeah, Zuko, we came here to have fun," Sokka said, "Not to sit around while you work. Don't make us use the cactus juice!"

"Yes, we came here to cheer you up," Katara piped in with a smile.

Zuko stared at her for a long moment as he debated with himself. He did not want to leave his responsibilities, but he also did not want to miss the chance of another trip with his friends. Who knew when he will have the chance again? Besides, he did need a vacation and his uncle was more than capable in handling the work in his absence. With an impassive expression he looked back at Iroh, who was smiling at him expectantly.

"If you think it is alright Uncle, I think we can go," Zuko finally relented, "Of course, I can only be away for a few days."

Iroh smiled broadly as the others immediately exclaimed their excitement. Mai's eyes had widened in shock before she narrowed them in anger. Why did Zuko so easily relent to their request, while he did not even consider hers for even a second? She clenched her hands tightly to her sides.

"Well, I'll ask Admiral Jee to take you, since you can't all ride Appa," the old man spoke up over their chatter.

"But I can't leave Appa alone," Aang said, worried.

"It'll be fine, Avatar Aang. He has plenty of space in the stables and food, and I promise you I'll visit him every day," Iroh promised the young monk.

After a few more reassurances, the young boy finally relented. They all excitedly began to talk about their vacation. Zuko frowned when Mai strode out of the room without another word.

"Yes! I can practice my Sandbending," Toph said, pulling onto Zuko's arm as Mai left.

Distracted, Zuko grinned down at her.

"Are you going to build a sand sculpture of me?"

Toph lightly punched him on his arm

"As if you don't have enough monuments of you around the city," she muttered sarcastically.

* * *

After settling their things in the royal beach house, the rest of the gang quickly made their way towards the beach, while Zuko made sure everything was in order. The young man realized that everything had been set for their arrival already.

_Uncle sure overdid it,_ he thought with a shake of his head.

As he walked around the beach house, he could not help remembering the times he had spent here with his mother. How they would wade in the water and sit under the stars at night.

_I hope we could do all those things again...someday,_ Zuko thought sullenly before he shook his head and continued on his way.

A few minutes later, surrounded by his personal guards, Zuko arrived at the beach opened to the public and spotted his friends. He noticed the Fire Nation tourists bowing at the Avatar and at him and he nodded in return. They could have spent the day at his private beach at the back of the royal beach house, but the gang wanted to be around other people. He did not understand why. He had his guards had set up a spacious perimeter for him and his friends so they would not be disturbed by the crowd. He could see the excited people craning their necks to get a glimpse of the Fire Lord, the Avatar, and the war heroes. Zuko frowned at the attention, but decided to ignore it for the moment. He observed his friends for a minute before his eyes immediately started searching for Katara, but he frowned when he could not see her. He relaxed when he spotted her swimming in the water before he looked away. He saw Mai sitting on a blanket and beneath an umbrella to ward of the gleaming sun. He could not help but think that the shade made her look even gloomier. He slowly made his way over to her.

"You, there, fetch me a cold drink, now," Mai, not having seen Zuko, ordered one of the servants she noticed pass her by.

Stopping, Jiao bowed stiffly before she went to collect the noblewoman's drink. Mai watched the group of friends playing on the shore with a dispassionate look before she glanced to the side when Zuko sat down next to her. She smiled at him, but he did not seem to notice as he frowned at her.

"Do you have to treat my servants so coldly?" Zuko asked as he looked at her disapprovingly.

"They are servants," she replied as if that answered it all.

Zuko frowned deeply before he looked away with a scowl. Even though he was Fire Lord, he did not like to be pampered too much and give extra work to his servants. And although he was not exactly an amicable lord to his servants, he always tried to treat them well. Yet, he knew Mai's thoughts regarding servants were the same as the rest of the nobility.

Katara was the complete opposite. She treated them all with kindness. At the thought of the waterbender, his attention once again turned to her. He admired the graceful way Katara swam and dove under the soft waves. He quickly looked away and cleared his throat when Mai talked to him. Not having heard what she said, he turned to her before he paused.

"Mai, aren't you hot in that thing?" Zuko asked as he looked at her.

She was wearing a black one-piece bathing suit under a light, transparent black cloak.

"No," she answered listlessly.

Zuko shrugged before he looked over at the others who seemed to be clearing the sand for something. He noticed Toph wearing green shorts that came down to her thighs and a sleeveless shirt that covered down to her stomach. Suki was wearing a light brown bathing suit and Ty Lee her usual pink. He looked back at Mai's lifeless outfit and frowned.

Suddenly, there was an explosion of water coming from the ocean. Zuko turned to see a large wave part in half as Katara emerged from the sea. She was surfing upon the large waves on a long piece of ice. She moved gracefully on the water as she bent the waves, twisting and swerving. The tourists on the beach turned to look at the waterbender with wonder. Coming towards the shore, Katara dissolved the ice surfboard, flipping her wet braid over her shoulder as she walked towards the others on the sandy beach.

_Oh, Agni!_ Zuko could not help but exclaim as he looked at the waterbender with wide golden eyes.

Her long, brown hair was pulled high into a ponytail. She was wearing a two-piece navy blue bikini, the top part crisscrossed at her chest, covering down to her ribcage while the bottom piece came down to her mid-thighs with small slits on either side of her thighs. And her bronzed skin seemed to glow even more under the sun's rays. Something stirred deep within him and he shifted in his spot. He had never been affected so much by a woman in a bathing suit before.

Mai did not like the look on Zuko's face as he continued to stare at the waterbender and she narrowed her eyes. He had never looked at her that way.

"Zuko! Do you want to play 'Catch Momo'?" he heard Katara call out.

Snapping out of his trance, Zuko mentally shook his head. He looked over to where the others were waiting and his eyes widened slightly as he saw Katara smiling at him as she waited for his answer. He felt his heart expand before he mentally shook himself as he tried to remember the game. He remembered them playing "Catch Momo" when they were on Ember Island during the war. Momo would fly and jump around to invade being caught while everybody gave chase and whoever caught him won. However, all the players had to make sure to stop each other from doing so by using their bending or other skills. Even though Toph could not see she liked the challenge as she tried to make it difficult for the others. Zuko had come up with this idea in order to get Aang interested in practicing more as Sozin's Comet approached.

"Well? Yes or no?" Katara asked and grinned.

"Sure," Zuko finally managed to say before he turned to Mai when she cleared her throat.

"Do you want to join, Mai?" he asked casually.

"No," she said dryly, "I don't want to play such a childish game."

Zuko frowned before he shrugged as he stood up before he walked over to the others. He was barely aware of how the young women standing outside the perimeter batted their eyelashes at him so he would notice them. But he paid them no heed, it was always the same. The women at Court did the impossible to get his attention, but he knew they only wanted the privilege to be married to the most powerful and wealthiest man in the world. Zuko took off his light shirt and tossed it to the side, wearing only gold and dark red swimming trunks. All the female tourists turn to stare at him, giggling and whispering to one another, but he did not take any notice of the commotion he had caused.

The color on Katara's cheeks rose up as she saw Zuko flexing his muscles as he stretched and the sun's rays shone upon his exposed skin. She quickly looked away as she remembered the previous embarrassing moment in his room.

_But this is the beach. All the men are shirtless,_ a wicked part of her brain said logically, _It's okay_

With that being said, Katara discreetly looked back to admire the young Fire Lord's body since the other situation had been too awkward to really take a good look. He had a well-sculpted body, lean and full of hard muscle. Not too lanky, which she could not help but think of Aang, or too muscular. His alabaster skin was similar to the color of cool cream. She briefly glanced at the new scar on his chest and realized that it resembled a star.

"Don't get distracted now, Sugar Queen," Toph piped in with a grin.

The Water Tribeswoman looked away in embarrassment as she threw a glare at Toph, who of course, could not see it.

_Focus Katara. You are a Waterbending Master. No_body _is going to distract me,_ Katara told herself.

_Just don't look at her body, at her caramel-colored skin, and perfect, slim legs, and perky breasts…Stop Zuko! Focus,_ Zuko scolded himself. _No way am I losing._

"Alright whoever catches Momo wins!" Sokka reminded them excitedly as he glanced around at everybody. Now that the war was over, none of them had to feel guilty or worried for having fun.

Momo, oblivious to what was happening, sat on the sand grooming his tail. They took positions around him and slowly approached the furry animal. Large ears flicking on his head, Momo froze and looked up to see he was surrounded. With an excited chirp, he shot up and flew over Sokka's head who jumped up to grab him. He cursed when Momo was pushed higher up by a burst of air Aang threw.

With a loud chip, the lemur landed on the sand before screeching when Suki pounced at him. He was saved, however, when Toph blocked the female warrior's path with a wall of sand. Cursing, Suki jumped back in time to avoid colliding into it and scowled at the short earthbender who was grinning madly. Momo excitedly flew away.

Feeling heat close to his tail, Momo glanced back and shrieked when he saw a small ball of fire following close behind. He swerved sharply to the side to avoid it only to collide against something hard. His large, green eyes widen when he saw the tall male reach for him.

"Got you," Zuko said triumphantly, only to curse when two water tendrils suddenly wrapped around his wrists and stopped him.

Seeing the opportunity, Momo chirped triumphantly as he again flew away.

"Good try, but not good enough," Katara teased the young Fire Lord when he looked up and quirked an eyebrow at her.

Zuko raised his body temperature to evaporate the water ribbons and steam rose around him. When he looked up again, he saw Katara chasing after Momo with the others. Smirking, he sprinted forward. Again, they all tried to catch Momo only to have the small lemur deftly evade them or their attempts were thwarted by each other. A crowd had gathered outside the perimeter made up of intimidating guards and awed at the spectacle.

Katara grinned when she caught up to Momo. Gathering the water tendril wrapped around her arm, she flung it forward and wrapped it around the lemur's middle. She skidded to a stop and pulled back her water and the small animal only to gasp when a fire whip sliced through the water whip, effectively breaking her hold. Chattering wildly, Momo again escaped. Katara turned around to see Zuko smirking at her.

"Not bad," Zuko countered as he raced past the waterbender.

Grinning, Katara chased after him and Momo. A few seconds later, both the waterbender and the firebender were again blocking each other as they pursued Momo. They even pushed the others out of the way as they prevented each other from catching the lemur.

The firebender and the waterbender were too engrossed in their own game that they did not notice the annoyed faces of the other players as they came to a stop and stood to the side. Zuko and Katara's attempts to win over each other seemed to take all day, neither one willing to lose. The crowd waited impatiently to see who would be the victor.

Feeling left out, Aang could no longer hold his irritation as he watched his girlfriend and his friend too absorbed in playing with each other, ignoring him and the rest. Toph frowned as she felt the young Avatar's pulse quicken and the ground around him shake a bit.

"That's enough!" Aang shouted just as Zuko was about to catch Momo, causing him to miss.

"What the hell!" Zuko growled out, annoyed at being interrupted and distracted.

Momo, sensing his master's anger, headed toward the airbender before landing slowly on his shoulder. His ears dropped.

Katara frowned, a bit disappointed the game was broken up. She was having fun and she did not get the chance to beat Zuko properly.

"Do you have to take all the glory for yourself?!" Aang snapped, his whole face turning red.

Zuko looked at him with a raised brow and then at the rest, confused.

"Yeah, we wanted to play, too," Sokka spoke up.

Zuko frowned when he finally understood.

"I'm sorry, I guess I got carried away," he responded. He honestly did not notice he was upsetting them.

"Yeah, well, I thought you were excellent at keeping focus," Aang bit out, making Zuko clench his jaw.

Katara noticed Zuko was getting angry and she quickly tried to calm Aang down.

"Aang, please, I got carried away too. We didn't mean to be rude. Besides, it was just a game."

"Yeah, well, some game," he grumbled.

"Well, it was still fun!" Ty Lee piped in as she somersaulted next to Katara, trying to lighten the mood. "How about we have a bonfire tonight?"

Zuko glared at Aang for a moment before he turned away and walked back to sit next to Mai.

"What?" he irritably asked as he saw her cold stare.

He noticed that Jiao was now fanning Mai and he glared at his girlfriend.

"Jiao, take a break," he ordered firmly.

Jiao bowed at him gratefully as she retreated.

"Well, it seemed you really enjoyed…that game," Mai said dryly.

Zuko looked at the monotonous young woman next to him with a hard frown. He was about to ask her what she meant by that when out of the corner of his eye he noticed Katara walking angrily away from an irritated Aang.

* * *

Katara stormed into the beach house and almost crashed into Jiao, who was carrying the laundry.

"I am so sorry, Lady Katara, I was not looking at where I was going," the young servant explained.

"Don't worry about it. I was the one who was not paying attention," Katara reassured her, as she kept on walking.

Jiao frowned after her before she resumed in her duties.

Katara headed toward the room she shared with Toph and sat down with a huff on her bed after she wrenched the door open.

"What's wrong, Sugar Queen?" Toph asked as she entered the room behind her.

"Ugh! Why does Aang have to be so irritating sometimes?" Katara exclaimed as she began to furiously bend the water from the basin on the wardrobe. "I let him have his fun, why can't I?"

"Well, it's normal for him to have acted like that. You and Sparky did ignore the others," Toph said with a shrug.

"I apologized already! I just got carried away. He didn't have to speak to Zuko and me like that," Katara sighed.

"Maybe he just got jealous," Toph said with a small smile on her lips.

"Jealous? Of what?" Katara asked, confused. It was just a game. Nothing else…

"Oh, _I_ don't know," Toph said casually and grinned.

The waterbender was about to ask what she was talking about, but she was interrupted when Aang knocked on the opened door.

"Katara, can I talk to you?" he asked quietly.

Toph patted Katara's arm as she left the room. Aang watched her go before he turned back to the silent waterbender.

"I'm sorry I acted that way. I was just a bit mad that you were ignoring me and the rest of the group," he said as he entered the room

Katara sighed and her rigid body relaxed slightly.

"I'm sorry I made you feel that way, but I told you it was unintentional. I promise I won't do it again. But I felt hurt that you started yelling at Zuko and me. We were just playing," she told him.

"Yeah, well, it didn't seem like it," Aang muttered.

"What was that?" Katara asked as she looked at him with a puzzled expression.

"Nothing...I hope Appa is okay," he said instead, hoping the change of topic would dispel the tension between them.

Katara stood up and walked over to him.

"Don't worry, Aang, he's with Iroh. He's fine. Besides, I bet he's enjoying his rest."

She could not help but remember the time when Appa was stolen in the desert and how devastated Aang became. Sometimes it seemed he cared more for his animals than for her. She quickly brushed the thought away.

"I guess…Well, let's go to that bonfire then," Aang said as he leaned down to kiss her. But Katara held up her hand, stopping him.

"Aang, don't you think you should apologize to someone else?" she asked, raising an eyebrow.

Sighing, he answered, "You're right. I will go apologize to Zuko right now. See you outside?"

She nodded before she sighed again when he turned around to head out the door. Why did it seem like she was becoming less patient with Aang lately?

* * *

"Ah, isn't the night beautiful?" Ty Lee asked with a sigh as she looked up at the stars.

Mai snorted softly as she sat next to the acrobat with a cold look on her face. Katara did not reply as she waited worriedly for Zuko and Aang to show up. She hoped everything was well.

"Yeah, very beautiful," Sokka said as he caressed Suki's cheek, making the warrior blush.

Katara smiled as she watched her brother and her friend hug one another. They really loved each other deeply. Just like how she loved Aang?

Katara looked over at her brother and Suki cuddled against a log. It was the same question she kept asking herself ever since she had accepted to be Aang's girlfriend. Then looking at the fire she frowned.

_I don't know…I'm confused._

No. She shook her head. Of course, she did. Why else would she still be together with Aang if it wasn't because she loved him?

She was interrupted out of her thoughts as she noticed Aang and Zuko walking toward them. The Avatar was laughing and the Fire Lord was smirking. Katara sighed with relief and smiled as they sat down near the fire, shoving her thoughts far from her mind.

"Hey there, what took you guys so long?" Sokka asked. "We were about to send a search party for you." He laughed.

_Everything is back to normal again,_ Katara thought as they all sat under the night sky. At least, she hoped it was.

* * *

It was their last day in Ember Island. They will be leaving the following morning, back to the Fire Nation Palace.

_Finally we can leave this place,_ Mai thought glumly as she sat outside a tea shop, ignoring the noisy people around her. _But first I have to get something straighten out. _

Someone stood up from behind her and accidentally bumped into her, causing her to spill her tea across her table.

"Oops, sorry," she heard someone say.

Mai only snorted in reply, irritated. She looked up to see who the idiot was that bumped into her and she wished she had not. It was that guy from the last time they visited with Azula, from that house party. What was his name? Ruon-Jian?

"Hey there, I remember you," he said, grinning arrogantly.

"Oh," Mai said simply. She had to admit that he was attractive.

Just then, she noticed Zuko coming toward them with the earthbender walking beside him. She smiled inwardly. It was a good thing Ruon-Jian appeared.

"Mai, there you are. We have been looking for you," Zuko told her as he stood in front of her table.

He looked uninterestedly at the other young man also standing who had a look of terror on his pretty-boy face.

_He looks familiar,_ Zuko thought absently.

"Oh, I was just here, talking to…Ruon-Jian. You do remember him, don't you? From last time we were here?" Mai said in her usual dull voice.

This time she would not mind if Zuko got extremely jealous. She wanted him to confirm to everybody else that she belonged to him. Ruon-Jian looked about ready to die as he awkwardly bowed to the Fire Lord.

"Oh, yes I remember. Excuse my behavior from last time. I overreacted," Zuko simply said as he stared at the other man passively.

Ruon-Jian only gawked.

"Ah, i-it's f-fine!" he stammered.

Mai held back a frown. Did Zuko really mean that?

"We were just talking right now, that's it," she added, hoping to spark something within him.

Toph narrowed her sightless eyes. _Is the insipid woman trying to get Sparky jealous?_

Zuko nodded distantly, ruining Mai's hopes.

"Anyway," he continued casually, "I just wanted to tell you that we're packing already. So if you want to buy anything, you should do it now. We will spend the rest of the day at the beach."

Toph grabbed Zuko's sleeve before Mai tried something else and said in an almost whining voice, "Come on, Zuko. _Katara_ and the others are waiting for us."

Zuko looked down at the short earthbender.

"Alright, alright. Let's go. We'll see you later, Mai. Nice seeing you again," Zuko told the still gaping young man as he left with a grinning Toph.

Mai clenched the teacup in her thin hands, glaring daggers at Toph's back as they left.

Ruon-Jian, sensing it was a bad time said, "Well, it was great seeing you again. I wish we could have talked some more." And he quickly retreated without waiting for a reply.

* * *

As Toph and Zuko walked through the small island to find the others in the gift shops, Toph spoke up.

"So, Sparky, what's the story between you and that guy? He practically had a heart attack!" She chortled.

"What guy? Oh, you mean Ruon-Jian? Well, last time Mai, Ty Lee, and I visited Ember Island was with…Azula." He paused for a second before he cleared his throat.

"She made us go to this stupid house party that some pompous ass threw. Well, Ruon-Jian was trying to hit on Mai and I kind of got jealous and started to pick a fight with him. Mai got angry and we almost broke up, but we got it settled." Zuko then frowned. "Now that I think about it, it was stupid of me for having acted like that."

"So you are saying that you are not the jealous type anymore?" Toph asked smiling.

_Or maybe not the jealous type of guy for Mai_, she mused.

"Hm…I guess," Zuko answered with a shrug, not really interested in the topic.

They noticed the others waving at them from one of the countless shops.

_Well, we'll see about that,_ Toph grinned wickedly.

"Hey, you guys! What took you two so long?" Sokka asked. When they tried to explain, he only waved his hand impatiently. "Never mind, let's go. I can't wait to buy some souvenirs!"

The group walked around the shops, looking at the many objects the shops offered with Zuko's guards nearby. Everybody else marveled at the trinkets, but Zuko was not really interested in buying more unnecessary things.

As they entered another shop, Toph waited behind a tall vase for the others since she could not see the stupid things. She was starting to doze off when she heard a group of men chuckle amongst themselves.

"Hey, look at that one. She has a nice smile that goes with her pink outfit," one of them said.

Toph yawned when the next comment stopped her.

"Well, look at the Water Tribe girl. She sure has a great body. Look at those legs."

Toph furrowed her forehead.

_Those perverts!_ She was seriously considering hurling some huge stones at them when she felt Zuko's footsteps come close to where she was. She grinned. _Time to prove my theory right._

"Hey, Sparky, find anything interesting?" she called out.

"No," he answered as he walked towards her. "There is just a bunch of junk and—" Zuko stopped short at the comment that reached his ears.

"I wonder how that Water Tribe girl kisses. I bet her lips would feel good on my skin," Zuko noticed a man say.

"Yeah, bet that brown hair is soft. I wonder how that would feel," another man commented with a deep laugh. They kept on making depraved comments as they stared at the unsuspecting young woman walking around the shop.

Toph grinned as she felt Zuko's pulse quicken and the air grow a bit hotter around them.

_This is gonna be good,_ she thought as she crossed her arms in front of her chest.

Zuko set his jaw and clenched his hands.

Those bastards were talking about Katara! How dare they say such things about her? He hated the leering looks they were giving her. Well, he was going to put an end to it! He marched towards them with so much poise, dignity, and outrage that the men's attention fell on him immediately.

"I hope you men are not talking about my friend over there in such a disrespectful manner," Zuko growled out dangerously while his two personal guards stood behind him with threatening looks. "Imprisonment could be an option for such lack of respect to the Fire Lord's friends," he drawled as he lifted one hand and lit a hot, bright flame.

The men noticed the fire crown on his head and the distinct scar on the left side of his face and immediately backed away, apologizing and bowing as they scrambled away with Zuko staring hard after them.

_Not a jealous type, huh?_ Toph mused.

"What was that about?" Katara asked as she came up to them, concerned.

"Nothing," Zuko replied tranquilly. She did not need to know about those disgusting comments. Then smiling down at her he asked, "Find anything interesting?"

* * *

Katara swam gracefully beneath the ocean water. She stayed underwater for a while as she admired the colorful fish swimming around her while the sun's rays shone from above the surface. As she surfaced her element, Katara looked ahead toward the beach. Sokka and Suki were nowhere to be seen, probably walking in the city. Mai was—as usual—sitting under her umbrella, a servant bringing her a cool drink. Aang and Toph were playing around, trying to build the best sand impression of Momo.

Now that she thought about it, Sokka made a sand impression of Suki—even if it was not that great— but Aang never did one of her. He had only done one of Appa and now Momo. She was a bit sad by that, but she quickly shook the thought out of her mind.

She looked at the shore and noticed Zuko resting on his back near the water, the foamy waves gently lapping his ankles. Momo was curled up in a ball next to his head. Katara looked around once more, but nobody else was there since they were at Zuko's private beach and he had dismissed his guards for their break.

A wide grin spread on Katara's tanned face. Lifting her hands up, she summoned a large wave and, with a flick of her hands, sent it straight to an unsuspecting Zuko. Momo opened his eyes, and with a shriek, flew upwards as he, too, watched the wave go after the firebender.

"Argh! What the hell!" Zuko cursed as he shot up straight and shook the salty water from his hair, wiping the liquid from his eyes with a growl.

He looked across to the offending blue ocean and saw Katara clasping her mouth with her hands as she tried to hold her laughter.

"What was that for?" he growled lowly, narrowing his eyes.

Katara could not contain her mirth any longer and burst out into laughter as she waded toward him, bending the water from her body.

"Oh, Zuko! You should've seen your face! It was priceless!" She laughed. She paused to imitate his surprised face when he was doused before she continued with her giggle fit.

"That was not funny," he grumbled, keeping his facial expression stony.

"Oh, yes it was!" Katara countered and she was seized by another fit of uncontrollable laughter. Momo landed beside them, making sure no more strange waves came his way before he started to groom his fur.

Zuko looked at the waterbender as she laughed uncontrollably. A small smile began to tug the corner of his lips, softening the sharp features of his face. He was not mad at all for what she had done, quite the contrary, he was amused. No one else would have dared do what Katara just did. The small smile then turned into a mischievous grin.

Since Katara was still laughing hard with her eyes closed while she held her aching stomach, she did not notice as Zuko moved toward the water's edge. With a large smirk on his face, Zuko entered the cool water and with great force splashed the water at the Water Tribe woman.

Katara sputtered loudly since she had been laughing with her mouth opened.

"Hey!" she complained as she swept the sea water from her face before she glared at the firebender.

Then Zuko chuckled.

"You're right," he said, "It _is_ priceless!"

And he began to laugh.

Katara looked at his handsome face as his golden eyes squinted shut and his smiling mouth opened for him to emit his laughter. He was pointing his index finger at her while with his other hand he clutched his side. Laughing still, he moved deeper into the ocean. Katara stared at him wide-eyed. She had never seen or heard him laugh before. She smiled. He had a nice smile and now she knew he had a wonderful laugh. She began to laugh with him.

Mai—who had been watching them like a hawk—was expecting Zuko to angrily shout at the woman and storm off fuming. But her black eyes widened in disbelief as she not only saw that Zuko remained calm, but he began to laugh! He was laughing because of that Water Tribe woman! Mai had never seen Zuko laugh, not even when they were children! She narrowed her eyes as she glared at the waterbender's back.

_I have to do something to stop this,_ Mai thought irritably. She did not like that Katara had been able to make Zuko do things he had never done before, not even when she had tried very hard.

"Oh, yeah?" Katara grinned at Zuko as she sent another wave aimed for his back, but he quickly diverted it with a fireball. While he was distracted by that, Katara jumped into the water, splashing him again.

"Hey," Zuko said as she surfaced and splashed her face.

"Hey, yourself!" she countered as she sent splash after splash at him, making him laugh more deeply.

Zuko began to splash the water at her in return, each one determined to out splash the other. Zuko smirked widely and Katara shrieked with laughter as they began to move closer towards one another in order to splash even harder, the water now up to their necks.

_No way is he going to beat me in my own element,_ Katara thought as she began to move her hands in order to summon another wave.

Zuko noticed and grabbed her wrists, making them both freeze as they stared at each other.

"Oh, no you don't," Zuko said coolly and smirked at her, but faltered slightly as she smirked mischievously back at him.

"Watch me," she replied half in defiance and half in amusement. She lowered half her face into the water.

Zuko raised his eyebrow in confusion and wariness. Katara raised her head, her cheeks full of water, and without warning, squirted it straight at Zuko's face. His eyes widened in shock as he just stood there. He had not expected that, and even though it was a simple act, he felt his heart skip a beat. Katara started to laugh again at his surprised face and Zuko could only smile down at her.

"What's so funny, Sweetness?" they heard Toph ask.

They turned to see the earthbender standing at the edge of the shore, Aang beside her with a confused look and Mai next to them with a dark expression.

Zuko realized he was still holding onto Katara's wrists and released them immediately, his face burning up, before he quickly recovered his normal demeanor. But Katara did not notice as she continued to laugh.

"Oh you guys! You should've seen Zuko's face when I drenched him with a wave! It was hilarious!"

Toph grinned. "Bet it was priceless."

"It was!" Katara giggled.

"Well, yours was pretty priceless as well." Zuko smirked as he stepped onto the shore with Katara right behind him.

"You beat Sugar Queen in her own game? Wow, Sparky," Toph whistled as she patted his back.

"He did not beat me! I was just caught off guard," Katara protested as she crossed her arms and huffed.

Zuko smirked. "Come on, Katara, just admit it."

Katara was about to reply defiantly when Mai cut in sharply, "Zuko, don't you have to answer the letter Iroh sent you?"

Zuko's unusual cheerful face returned to his regular stoic expression and Katara's good mood fell as well.

"I forgot. I'll see you all later," he told them as he quickly walked back to the beach house, a few servants handing him a towel and his robe.

Mai coldly glanced at Katara and turned to follow after him.

Katara sighed. "Even though he's supposed to be in vacation, he's still working."

Aang and Toph nodded.

Katara unthinkingly moved away as Aang tried to wrap his arms around her.

"I'm going to take a bath," she said before she walked away.

* * *

Although not as grand as his royal bedchamber at the palace, the room Zuko occupied in the beach house was just as impressive after the entire building had been remodeled at his order. Sitting at the desk that rested against one wall, Zuko looked over the letter he had received that morning. He had asked Iroh to send him any information while he was away. Things seem to be actually going great, but he had a feeling something was wrong. Zuko looked out the window and noticed the moon. It was small, but it shone brightly.

He smiled as he remembered what happened with Katara that day. He had never played like that before, not even as a child. He always thought it was stupid and childish, but it had not felt like that with her.

His smile grew a bit larger. He had laughed, something he had not done since his mother disappeared and especially after the Agni Kai with Ozai. But now he had truly laughed and it was all thanks to Katara and her silly games.

* * *

After thinking about it for a long time, Mai decided to set up her scheme. She did not like the way Zuko and Katara acted around each other and she was determined to keep things the way they were before. She searched the beach house for the waterbender, but when she found no sign of her she stepped outside. She immediately found Katara and Aang sitting on the steps that led to the beach and she sneered.

_Good, now she won't be 'confused' any longer,_ she thought. The young noblewoman did not care if she was just making a big deal out of nothing, but it will give the waterbender a clear message in case she got any ideas about Zuko.

"Hello," she said monotonously, making Aang and Katara jumped. "I think something is wrong with Zuko, he hasn't been himself lately. I was wondering if you could…talk to him."

Katara quickly got up as her face showed her concern. "Is he sick? Is he hurt? I can heal him—"

"No!" Mai yelled in order to stop her. Both looked at her in surprise at her uncharacteristic outburst. She cleared her throat. "I mean, it is not physical, maybe it's too much stress. Can you talk to him…he won't tell me what is wrong. He's in his room." With that, she left as silently as she appeared.

Aang and Katara looked after her with very confused looks.

"Do you think maybe she's the one who needs a talk about her strange behavior?" Aang asked.

* * *

Zuko was getting ready to sleep when Mai opened the door and closed it behind her, making sure it was unlocked.

"Mai, is something wrong?" he asked with an annoyed frown as he looked around for a shirt. He hated when people did not give him his privacy. Why did she enter his room when she knew that, especially when it was already late?

She walked over to him and surprised him as she placed her thin arms around his neck.

"No, Zuko," she said.

Frowning, Zuko tried to pull her arms away from him, but she refused to move.

"If it is nothing, then you can leave," he told her coolly. "I am tired and wish to rest."

Mai narrowed her eyes at his dismissive tone, but before he could try to move away, she kissed him, drawing her thin body close to him.

Just then, the door opened.

"Zuko, are you okay? We—" Katara's mouth flew opened as she saw them and Aang's gray eyes widened behind her.

Zuko quickly pulled away.

"Katara!" he exclaimed.

"I'm sorry! I didn't mean to interrupt you guys," Katara said as she quickly whirled around and bolted outside.

Uncaring of the reason for the sudden anxiety he felt, Zuko was about to follow her, but Mai pulled him back.

"Well, I'll leave you two alone," Aang said with a silly grin as he closed the door behind him.

"Zuko, what's wrong?" Mai asked innocently as she stroked his arm.

Zuko only stared at the door, his hands clenching at his side.

"Zuko?"

"I'm sorry Mai, I'm tired. We're leaving early tomorrow, so get some rest," Zuko answered tersely as he moved away from her.

The noblewoman frowned before she reluctantly made her way to the door.

"Alright, good night," Mai said and closed the door behind her.

With silent steps, the dark-haired woman walked down the lightly lit corridor and made her way to her room. She had enjoyed the look on Katara's face.

_That will show her._

She hoped the waterbender finally got it in her head that Zuko would never be hers.

* * *

"Katara? What happened?" Toph asked as she heard the young woman slam the door close and throw herself on her bed.

"Don't worry. It's nothing," Katara replied. She buried her face in her pillow as she tried to erase what she just saw.

"You're lying. Tell me, Sugar Queen," Toph ordered from her bed.

Katara sighed before she finally recounted what she saw to the blind earthbender. Toph raised her eyebrow as she listened to her friend.

"I mean, I should not be upset, right? They are a couple…They could do whatever they want," Katara said, but she could not help feeling upset and she wonder why that was.

_Jealous?_ Toph grinned.

"Did you actually see them…you know?" she asked with a shrug.

Katara looked up from her pillow.

"Well…no…" Now that she thought about it, they were just hugging and kissing.

"Then stop acting so embarrassed about it! Now go to sleep," Toph yawned as she flopped herself back onto her bed.

"You're right," Katara mumbled.

Somehow, that comforted her and she did not understand why she should feel comforted. Katara stroked her necklace and then reached for the hairpin that she had placed on the nightstand near her bed as she waited for sleep to come to her.

"Katara?" she heard Toph ask on the bed next to her.

"Yes, Toph?"

"Was that Zuko laughing with you at the beach?"

Katara blushed as she remembered what happened earlier that day.

"Yeah, it was Zuko."

"He has a nice laugh," Toph said, loudly yawing again before she rolled over to her side.

Katara smiled as she looked down at the rose hairpin.

"Yes. He does."

* * *

As the sun began to rise the next day, Zuko rose from his bed. After meditating, he made his way outside. He gazed toward the clear, blue ocean as the sun peeked over it, creating a light orange and pink color in the sky. The young lord inhaled the salty air, the breeze ruffling his black hair. Then he looked at the spot where he had been laying when Katara doused him. He smiled. He would never forget that. Then his face heated up as he remembered Katara's shocked expression when she entered his room the previous night.

He pinched the bridge of his nose.

"What must she think of me?"

Though he did not know why he was so worried about what she thought about him. He was a man, not to mention the Fire Lord. He could do whatever he wanted, even have concubines if he so desired. He had a girlfriend, so such things were normal…

_But I don't want Katara to know that I…_

Zuko sighed and ran his fingers through his hair. Why didn't he? Why did it affect him what Katara thought anyway?

He noticed as Jee approached the royal beach house. The ship had arrived. Zuko sighed with relief.

_Good. Now things can return to normal._

Jee bowed as he came up to the younger firebender.

"Fire Lord Zuko, we have arrived and are waiting for you and your friends," he greeted with a small smile.

"Thank you, Admiral Jee," Zuko replied with a nod, "We will be ready in a couple of hours. Care to join us for breakfast?"

Jee only stared. The Fire Lord was asking _him_ to join His Highness and his friends for breakfast?

"I do not want to impose…" he said, not sure how to react.

"Zuko. Admiral Jee! Good morning!"

Both men turned to see Katara smiling cheerfully at them.

_Damn! Why does she have to smile like that?_ Zuko thought as his heart clenched in his chest.

Jee bowed and smiled at her. "Good morning, Lady Katara."

"Good morning, Katara. I asked Admiral Jee if he would join us for breakfast," Zuko told her as Jee seemed ready to leave.

Jee froze.

"Why that's a great idea! I'll tell the servants we have another guest and ask them to set up another plate." Katara paused before she turned to Zuko. "If you don't mind me asking them, that is…"

Zuko smiled and nodded, and she rushed off. Typical Katara, always making sure everybody ate their meals just like when they were in the Western Air Temple.

"She sure is different from other women," Jee commented quietly.

Zuko turned to look at him. "Why do you say that?"

"Well, she treats everybody equally and is friendly to everyone. It seems she does not mind being friends with lower subjects," Jee observed.

"Yes…I guess you're right," Zuko said thoughtfully before he focused again. "By the way, how are the productions going at the colonies? Have there been any more raids?"

_Since Uncle won't tell me,_ he added dryly to himself.

Jee sighed as he straightened himself out.

"Well, a couple more incidents have occurred. But since the doubling of the guard duty and the construction of the walls they have not been able to inflict much damage," the admiral informed him. "I also heard that some of the Earth Kingdom residents are a bit nervous that the firebenders are getting better trained."

Zuko held back a sigh. He knew there was something else.

"Well, let's go eat," he said as he turned back inside the beach house with Jee following close behind. He would deal with this when he returned to the Palace. And Iroh will have to hear from him.

* * *

**A/N: Thanks for reading!**

**~alwaysZutarian**


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